Syria
TPS for Syria Extended and Available to First-Time Applicants
On July 29, 2022, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced an 18-month extension of Syrian Temporary Protected Status (TPS), until March 31, 2024. DHS also allowed Syrians living in the U.S. since July 28, 2022, to apply for TPS for the first time.
This means that more than 6,400 Syrians can apply for permission to continue working and living in the United States through March 31, 2024. It also provides TPS protection and work permission to nearly 1,000 first-time Syrian TPS applicants who have lived in the U.S. since July 28, 2022.
TPS offers temporary protection and work authorization to people from specific countries who the Secretary of DHS decides are unable to return home safely due to civil war, environmental disasters, or other extreme circumstances in their home countries.
Syrians who received TPS previously must apply for this TPS extension and work authorization between August 1, 2022, and September 30, 2022.
DHS will automatically extend the validity of certain EADs previously issued for Syrian TPS holders through September 30, 2023.
Syrians who previously filed for TPS and whose applications are pending as of August 1, 2022, do not need to file another TPS extension and work authorization application. When USCIS grants the pending applications for TPS and work permission, the approval will be through March 31, 2024.
You should show your current EAD card. If your employer asks you, you may show this Federal Register notice showing that USCIS has automatically extended your EAD through September 30, 2023. But you are not required to show this notice to your employer.
Syrians who have lived in the U.S. since July 28, 2022, and who have been present in the U.S. continuously since October 1, 2022, are eligible to apply for TPS for the first time. The application period for first-time Syrian TPS applicants is from August 1, 2022, through March 31, 2024. You can apply even before the October 1, 2022, continuous presence date.
TPS holders can ask for permission to travel outside the U.S. by requesting advance parole. The request for advance parole must be filed on Form I-131 and granted before you take a trip outside the U.S. Remember, it’s important not to travel outside the U.S. without first receiving advance parole.
Beware of scammers.
Find a reputable legal service provider near you at https://iamerica.org/Immigration-Resources/Legal-Help .
Don’t forget – applying for an extension of TPS and your work authorization now may allow you to take advantage of other immigration benefits in the future and preserve your ability to file for future TPS extensions.
