Washington. – A federal judge ruled as “illegal” the decision by the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security,
Kristin Noem, to annul the extension of the
Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which poses a barrier for the
White House, which ended the immigration protection last week.
Noem last February modified the 18-month extension for TPS that favors more than half a million Haitians granted by the Joe Biden Administration (2021-2025), which ended on February 3, 2026.
The secretary reduced the benefit to twelve months and set the due date as August 3, 2025, which allowed her to announce the end of the protection last Friday.
But this Tuesday, Judge Brian Cogan said in his ruling that Noem “does not have legal authority” to “partially annul” the TPS designation of a country.
The judge indicated that tens of thousands of Haitians have come to depend on TPS, which grants them work permits and protects them from deportation, so withdrawing the benefit before that date (February 2026) “represents significant harm” that the court has the power to correct.
Hope Returns for Haitian Immigrants
The Cogan ruling, appointed by former President George W. Bush (2001-2009) for the New York district, brings back hope for thousands of Haitian immigrants protected by the immigration protection, who last Friday received a hard blow when Noem announced its end.
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The Executive had given beneficiaries until September 2 to apply for another immigration benefit or self-deport.
The decision in the lawsuit filed by nine affected Haitians would favor other immigrants from that country protected by TPS, according to Judge Cogan, citing his power to halt agency actions under the Administrative Procedure Act.
The interpretation comes after the Supreme Court ruled last week against universal judicial mandates that protect with its ruling others affected beyond the original plaintiffs.
