The US government has announced plans to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for citizens of Myanmar, a Southeast Asian country currently embroiled in civil war.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a draft notice on Monday in the Federal Register that will be officially published the following day, clarifying the changes.
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The magazine praised Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s decision to end the program.
“After reviewing each country’s circumstances and consulting with the appropriate U.S. Government agencies, the Secretary has determined that Burma (Myanmar) does not continue to meet the conditions for designation of Temporary Protected Status,” the document said.
“Accordingly, the Secretary terminates Burma’s Temporary Protected Status designation as required by law.”
Approximately 3,969 Myanmar nationals currently enjoy Temporary Protected Status, a legal entry route for foreigners who do not feel safe returning to their home country.
This status gives successful candidates already in the United States the ability to legally stay and work in the United States. As of November 10, a further 236 applications from Myanmar were pending.
However, President Donald Trump’s administration is trying to reduce immigration to the United States.
As a result, the government is attempting to revoke temporary protected status for several groups, including nationals of Haiti, Afghanistan, Venezuela, and other countries facing unstable situations.
Just last Friday, President Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that he was “immediately ending the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program for Somalis in the state of Minnesota,” accusing Somali gangs of “terrorizing” the state.
“Send them back where they came from. It’s over,” Trump wrote.
But legal experts question whether the president can revoke temporary protected status from certain groups in certain states. Some have accused Trump of trying to intimidate immigrants in order to force them to leave the country.
Under the Trump administration, the federal government also capped refugee admissions at a historic low of 7,500.
Additionally, the Trump administration is seeking to strip hundreds of thousands of immigrants of another temporary protection called “humanitarian parole.” The program allows migrants to enter the country for short periods of time due to emergencies or humanitarian concerns.
Some of these efforts currently face ongoing legal challenges. But so far, the Supreme Court has largely sided with the Trump administration.
For example, in an unsigned May 30 decision, a majority of the high court reversed a lower court ruling that prohibited the Department of Homeland Security from terminating humanitarian parole for approximately 500,000 Cubans, Nicaraguans, Venezuelans, and Haitians.
Two left-leaning justices, Ketanji Brown Jackson and Sonia Sotomayor, dissented and warned that lifting the moratorium would cause significant harm to U.S. immigrants while legal challenges proceed.
Brown Jackson wrote that the decision “understates the devastating consequences of allowing the government to abruptly upend the lives and livelihoods of nearly half a million noncitizens while their legal claims are pending.”
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In the case of Myanmar, the State Department issued a Level 4 travel advisory, the highest level, warning against domestic transit.
The report cited risks of “armed conflict, the potential for civil war, arbitrary enforcement of local laws, poor health infrastructure, land mines and unexploded ordnance, crime and unfair detention.”
The country has been grappling with civil war since the military overthrew President Aung San Suu Kyi’s government in February 2021, the latest chapter in nearly 80 years of domestic unrest.
The military leadership is embroiled in fighting with members of the government-in-exile, armed ethnic groups, and civilian rebels.
The company has reportedly led large-scale airstrikes, some of which targeted schools and hospitals. Both rebels and soldiers have been accused of human rights abuses, including torture.
The United Nations estimates that the protracted conflict has resulted in nearly 1,585,298 asylum seekers and refugees as of October, many seeking protection in neighboring countries such as Bangladesh and Malaysia.
Members of the persecuted Rohingya ethnic group have been rendered stateless amid the fighting.
Myanmar nationals were initially granted temporary protected status in the United States under former President Joe Biden in May 2021.
Since then, the administration has extended the protected designation twice, once in September 2022 and again in May 2024. The latest 18-month extension was scheduled to expire on Tuesday, November 25th.
Termination of temporary protected status becomes effective 60 days after the Federal Register notice is officially published.
The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that Secretary Noem has determined that conditions in the country are safe enough for citizens to return.
“Burma (Myanmar) continues to face humanitarian challenges, including due to continued military operations against armed resistance and the need for humanitarian assistance,” the notice said.
“However, Burma’s governance and stability have improved at the national and local levels.”
The notice added that allowing Myanmar nationals to remain in the country is “contrary to the national interests of the United States.”
In March, the Department of Homeland Security reported to Congress that 9,590 Myanmar citizens are eligible for protection but have not yet applied.
Just this month, another ship sank off the coast of Myanmar as Rohingya refugees were attempting to flee to safety. At least 27 people are confirmed dead and many more are missing.
