Massachusetts officials on Monday night celebrated a federal judge's decision to stay the Trump administration's plan to end Haiti's Temporary Protected Status, applauding its impact on Haitian workers and families here in Massachusetts. The administration plans to appeal the ruling.
The decision out of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia came on the eve of the scheduled end Haiti’s Temporary Protected Status, which was set to expire Tuesday.
The ruling represents a "resounding win for the tens of thousands of hardworking Haitian TPS recipients in Massachusetts who deserve fairness, dignity and opportunity," Attorney General Andrea Campbell said in a statement, noting the role Haitian residents play in health care and elder care.
At a hearing in Boston on Jan. 20, U.S. Sen. Ed Markey and Reps. Ayanna Pressley and Seth Moulton knocked the administration's plan to let TPS expire for Haitian immigrants, saying it would put roughly 350,000 people nationwide — including about 4,700 in Massachusetts — at risk of deportation. Pressley, of Boston, said her district "represents the third largest Haitian diaspora in the country."
TPS is granted to people from countries facing conflict, natural disaster or other extraordinary conditions.
Advocates of the administration's decision have said it is part of a broader push to enforce immigration laws and return TPS to its original temporary intent, with the Department of Homeland Security arguing that permitting Haitian nationals to remain temporarily in the United States "is contrary to the national interest."
"This decision restores integrity in our immigration system and ensures that Temporary Protective Status is actually temporary," a DHS spokesperson said in a June announcement about the termination of the status.
Gov. Maura Healey's office said Monday night that it planned to "immediately" notify employers across the state that Haitian TPS holders remain eligible to work.
“Tonight, Haitian families across our state and country can breathe a sigh of relief. Many Haitian TPS holders have been in the United States since as early as 2010," Healey said in a statement. "If President Trump had his way, thousands of nurses, home health aides, and other essential employees would not have been able to work tomorrow, and patients and families who are dependent on caregivers would have suffered."
In a Jan. 30 letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Healey said conditions in Haiti that justified the original 2010 TPS designation -- "political instability, widespread violence, humanitarian crises, and limited access to basic services - remain severe." She cited contributions of Haitian nationals "as taxpayers and consumers."
"TPS-eligible Haitians contribute $4.4 billion annually to the U.S. economy. They pay taxes, contribute to Social Security and Medicare, and spend their earnings in local businesses, strengthening our communities. Many are homeowners, parents of U.S.-citizen children, and long-term residents who have built their lives here and are committed to the future of our state," the governor wrote in her letter.
The Department of Homeland Security on Nov. 26, 2025 posted notice of the termination of TPS for Haiti, saying the country "no longer meets the statutory requirements for TPS."
"This decision was based on a review conducted by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, input from relevant U.S. government agencies, and an analysis indicating that allowing Haitian nationals to remain temporarily in the United States is inconsistent with U.S. national interests," DHS said.
DHS advised Haitians with TPS status to "prepare to depart if you have no other lawful basis for remaining in the United States" and highlighted a "secure and convenient self-deportation process" that includes a free plane ticket, $1,000 "exit bonus," and potential future opportunities for legal immigration to the United States.
DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin released a statement confirming plans for an appeal of Monday's court ruling.
"Supreme Court, here we come," McLaughlin said. "This is lawless activism that we will be vindicated on. Haiti’s TPS was granted following an earthquake that took place over 15 years ago, it was never intended to be a de facto amnesty program, yet that’s how previous administrations have used it for decades. Temporary means temporary and the final word will not be from an activist judge legislating from the bench."