GOOD NEWS FOR SOMALIA TPS
Due to the continuing existence of an ongoing armed conflict (and "extraordinary and temporary conditions") in Somalia, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced July 19, 2018 that it has justified extending Somalia's TPS designation until March 17, 2020 (an 18 month extension). Somalia was originally designated for TPS in 1991 when the country was experiencing a violent civil war. This decision will affect approximately 500 Somali TPS beneficiaries. The eligibility requirements for the re-registration are detailed on the USCIS Temporary Protected Status Designated Country: Somalia webpage. USCIS will update this webpage with instructions for the re-registration when they become available and instructs those applicants to not pay or submit any such forms to USCIS until the updated instructions have been provided.
Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced that it would extend TPS for Yemen until March 3, 2020 (an 18 month extension) due to the continuing existence of an ongoing armed conflict (and "extraordinary and temporary conditions") in Yemen. This decision will affect approximately 1,250 Yemeni TPS beneficiaries. The eligibility requirements for the re-registration are detailed on the USCIS Temporary Protected Status Designated Country: Yemen webpage. USCIS also had asked that applicants hold off paying or filing forms for the re-registration until it updates the instructions on the webpage.
If this announcement affects you and you need assistance with re-registering for TPS or you are from one of these countries and wish to remain in the U.S. and may be eligible for some other form of relief, you should contact an immigration attorney who handles such immigration matters as soon as possible.
***Please keep in mind that this blog posting is for educational purposes only (i.e., to give you general information and a general understanding of this immigration related matter); this blog posting does not provide specific legal advice and does not form an attorney-client relationship.***
Sources:
(1) https://www.dhs.gov/news/2018/07/19/secretary-homeland-security-kirstjen-m-nielsen-announcement-temporary-protected
(2) https://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/temporary-protected-status/temporary-protected-status-designated-country-somalia
(3) http://www.fox9.com/news/decision-to-come-thurs-on-temporary-protected-status-for-somali-refugees
(4) https://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/temporary-protected-status/temporary-protected-status-designated-country-yemen
(5) https://www.dhs.gov/news/2018/07/05/secretary-nielsen-announcement-temporary-protected-status-yemen
(6) https://www.npr.org/2018/07/05/626242262/trump-administration-renews-temporary-protected-status-for-some-yemenis
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