On June 25, 2026, the Supreme Court issued its 6-3 decision in Mullin v. Doe, Nos. 25–1083 and 25–1084, reversing the lower court orders that had blocked the termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Syria and Haiti. The Court’s ruling removes all judicial obstacles to the Administration’s TPS terminations and allows the Department of Homeland Security to proceed to act immediately.
Syria’s TPS designation and related benefits were slated to terminate on Nov. 21, 2025. On Nov. 19, 2025, a judge in the Southern District of New York issued an order staying the Syria TPS termination in Dahlia Doe v. Noem, 25-cv-8686 (S.D.N.Y.).
Due to the stay, employment authorization documents (EADs) held by Syrian TPS beneficiaries with category A12 or C19 remained valid and were extended to July 1, 2026. Approximately 6,000 Syrians and 350,000 Haitians were beneficiaries of these EADs.
What the Court Held
In an opinion by Justice Alito, joined by five other justices, the Court held that the TPS statute’s judicial review bar at 8 U.S.C. § 1254a(b)(5)(A) forecloses all non-constitutional challenges to TPS termination decisions — including claims that the Secretary failed to adequately consult with other government agencies before terminating a designation. The Court read the bar broadly to cover not only the Secretary’s final termination decision but every procedural step leading up to it. The Court also rejected the Haitian plaintiffs’ equal protection claim, finding that the Administration’s across-the-board termination of all thirteen TPS designations up for renewal provided a sufficient race-neutral explanation. Justices Kagan, Sotomayor, and Jackson dissented.
Impact on Future TPS Litigation
The ruling has broad implications beyond Syria and Haiti. The Court held that when evaluating a request for a preliminary injunction, a lower court may consider both the likelihood it has jurisdiction and the likelihood the claim will succeed on the merits — if either is lacking, the court must deny the injunction. This significantly limits lower courts’ ability to maintain the status quo in future TPS challenges. Pending litigation over TPS terminations for other countries — including Afghanistan, Burma, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, Somalia, South Sudan, Venezuela, and Yemen — may resolve quickly, and affected employees may lose work authorization in the coming weeks and months.
What This Means for Employers
USCIS has directed employers to use July 1, 2026 as the TPS expiration date for Syrian and Haitian employees (EAD category A12 or C19) on Form I-9 and in E-Verify. With no further court intervention expected, employers must reverify affected employees on or before July 1. Employers enrolled in E-Verify may receive DHS notifications flagging employees who may no longer be work-authorized and should respond promptly. Employers should keep in mind that immigration law and policy — and the lives affected by them — are subject to change, and this decision does not automatically end work authorization based on other changes in an individual’s immigration journey.