The Trump administration announced on Monday that it was lifting Myanmar nationals’ temporary legal status in the United States, claiming they could safely return to the war-torn Southeast Asian country and pointing to the junta’s planned elections as evidence that the situation is improving.
The move raised concerns about individuals who may be forced to return to Myanmar, which has been in political turmoil since the military seized power in a 2021 coup, ousting the civilian government and sparking a nationwide armed resistance movement.
In a statement justifying the move, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said that Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem consulted with U.S. government agencies and concluded that Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation for Myanmar is no longer necessary.
“This decision temporarily reinstates TPS,” Noem said in a statement, using another name for Myanmar. “We are ending Temporary Protected Status now that the situation in Burma has improved sufficiently that it is safe for Burmese nationals to return home. Burma has made significant progress in governance and stability, including the end of the state of emergency, plans for free and fair elections, a successful ceasefire agreement, and improvements in local governance that contribute to public service delivery and strengthen national reconciliation.”
In a formal notification of the move, DHS also acknowledged that Myanmar’s military junta had negotiated a ceasefire with ethnic armed groups. He pointed to China’s role as a mediator and compared the talks favorably to past peace efforts.
The agency said the status of around 4,000 Myanmar nationals benefiting from the status will expire on January 26.
International officials, including the United Nations, said elections planned by the junta for December and January will not be free and fair, with some opposition parties remaining banned and former leader Aung San Suu Kyi languishing in prison.
“The[US]factual analysis is excellent,” said John Sifton, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch. “Contrary to what they say, there has been no improvement in governance or stability, the lifting of the state of emergency is virtually meaningless, and the so-called elections announced by the military are widely understood to be a play.
The administration’s justification appears to contradict President Trump’s own Republican lawmakers, who have long advocated tough policies against Myanmar’s military junta. Yong Kim, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs East Asia and Pacific Subcommittee, said during a hearing on Myanmar last week that the upcoming election was a “phony” election “aimed at creating an illusion of legitimacy while allowing the military regime to continue to function as a proxy for China and Russia.”
The State Department has warned U.S. citizens not to travel to Myanmar “due to civil unrest, armed conflict, and arbitrary enforcement of local law.”
The ministry’s latest human rights report on the country, released in August, said there were “serious human rights problems” in Myanmar, including credible reports of human rights violations, including arbitrary killings and disappearances, torture, persecution of journalists, and restrictions on religious freedom.
“Burma’s human rights crisis worsened during the year due to an escalation of conflict between the military regime and opposition groups, including ethnic armed groups, and an increase in government airstrikes and shelling of civilian facilities and their vicinity,” the report said. The State Department also highlighted the deaths of two opposition leaders who died after being arbitrarily detained by the military regime.
The State Department declined to comment Monday, referring questions to DHS.
Myanmar’s TPS status had been extended for 18 months until November 25 under the administration of President Trump’s Democratic predecessor Joe Biden.
Republican President Trump has revoked TPS for citizens of several countries since taking office in January as part of an immigration crackdown.
