Trump Administration Revokes Deportation Protections for 600,000 Venezuelan Immigrants Ending Biden-Era Extension

The Trump administration has revoked an 18-month extension of deportation protections that the Biden administration had granted to more than 600,000 Venezuelan immigrants currently residing in the United States.

On Tuesday, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem rescinded the extension of the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program, which allows individuals to remain in the U.S. if returning to their home country is deemed unsafe. The TPS designation is intended for people fleeing ongoing armed conflicts, environmental disasters, or other extraordinary and temporary conditions. While it provides legal authorization to remain in the country, it does not offer a path to U.S. citizenship.

Justification for the Rollback

Former President Joe Biden’s Homeland Security Secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas, had approved the extension in early January before Donald Trump took office, citing the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Venezuela due to political and economic instability.

Noem defended her decision in an interview with Fox News, stating: “Before he left town, Mayorkas signed an order that said for 18 months, they were going to extend protection to people on Temporary Protected Status, which meant they were going to be able to stay here and violate our laws for another 18 months. We stopped that.”

Impact on Venezuelan Immigrants

The revocation of the extension places hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans in uncertainty regarding their legal status. Noem is required to make a decision on protections set to expire in April by Saturday; otherwise, the protections will automatically renew for six months, according to a report by The New York Times, which cited a copy of the decision.

“By taking this action, Secretary Noem is throwing over 600,000 into a state of ongoing bureaucratic limbo,” Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, told the publication. “People will no longer have any certainty as to whether they can stay in the country legally through the end of the year.”

Venezuelan Immigrants and Broader Implications for Immigration Policy

The TPS program currently protects approximately one million immigrants from 17 countries, including Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, Afghanistan, Sudan, and Lebanon.

Trump and Vice President JD Vance had indicated during their election campaign that they planned to scale back the use of TPS and other temporary immigration policies as part of their broader agenda on mass deportations. During Trump’s first term, he attempted to terminate most TPS enrollments, but those efforts were largely blocked by federal courts.

Also Read: Visa Overstays Are Illegal Immigrants, Wil Be Deported: White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt