Biden faces pressure from Dems to prolong contentious immigration initiative while Trump threatens to eliminate it.

The controversial immigration program, which has been in operation for many years, is currently facing the possibility of being abolished or severely restricted by the incoming Trump administration. Democrats are urging President Biden to take steps to safeguard the program.

The Temporary Protected Status program, introduced in the 1990s, enables the government to label countries as unsafe for citizens to return to, providing work permits and safeguarding from deportation for those already in the U.S. who are undocumented or whose legal status has expired.

The Biden administration has designated or re-designated several countries for TPS, including Venezuela, Haiti, and Afghanistan, resulting in hundreds of thousands of nationals remaining in the U.S. Currently, there are 17 countries designated for TPS.

The Trump administration attempted to end TPS for several countries, but this move was challenged by civil rights organizations for years.

In 2024, TPS once again became a significant concern as Republicans and conservatives highlighted the issue of mass migration through humanitarian parole from Haiti. Through the use of the CBP One app and a program that allowed up to 30,000 migrants from four countries per month into the U.S., migrants were able to become eligible for TPS if they arrived before the country was re-designated.

Reports of Haitian migrants flooding towns in Ohio and other places were widely covered, and were later amplified by former President Trump and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio. Trump had earlier pledged to revoke TPS for Haiti.

"Springfield, Ohio has been overrun. It's not right to do that to people. I would revoke TPS and bring the migrants back to their country," he said to NewsNation.

TPS has been criticized by conservatives for not being a "temporary" program as it claims to be, with Vance describing it as a "government edict prohibiting the deportation of individuals."

TPS designations may be restricted under a bill introduced by Sen.-elect Jim Banks, R-Ind., which requires Congress to approve them for 12-month terms and additional moves to extend them. Trump has pledged to launch a mass deportation operation, and restrictions on TPS and other immigration benefits are anticipated to accompany this.

Democrats have been calling on Biden to prolong safeguards under TPS and other schemes to mitigate the effects of the impending administration.

This month, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and other Democrats wrote to Biden stating that the time to secure and finalize the administration's policies is quickly coming to an end.

"It is imperative that you act promptly before the President-elect's inauguration to finish the critical tasks of the previous four years and safeguard immigrant families."

Despite the lack of movement on TPS by the Biden administration, there is no indication that redesignations or extensions are imminent.