WASHINGTON — The Trump administration said Tuesday it will terminate Temporary Protected Status for Somali nationals, requiring those covered by the program to leave the United States or secure another lawful status by March 17, 2026.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said conditions in Somalia have improved to the point that the country “no longer meets the law’s requirement for Temporary Protected Status,” and continued designation would be “contrary to our national interests.”
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The decision affects several thousand Somali nationals, though official counts vary widely. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services figures cited by news outlets indicate about 2,471 Somali nationals currently hold TPS and 1,383 additional applications are pending. A 2025 report by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service put the number of Somali-born TPS holders at about 705, reflecting differing methodologies and data snapshots.
TPS allows foreign nationals from countries experiencing armed conflict, natural disasters or other extraordinary conditions to live and work in the U.S. without threat of deportation. Somalia was first designated in 1991 amid civil war, with both Republican and Democratic administrations extending the status over three decades, most recently through March 2026.
Homeland Security officials urged beneficiaries to depart voluntarily before the deadline. Once TPS expires on March 17, Somali nationals covered by the program will lose both legal status and work authorization and could be subject to arrest and removal proceedings, the department said.
- Termination date: March 17, 2026
- Current TPS holders (USCIS-cited): 2,471
- Pending TPS applications (USCIS-cited): 1,383
- CRS estimate of Somali-born TPS holders (2025): ~705
- Initial Somalia TPS designation: 1991
The move lands amid heightened immigration enforcement in Minnesota’s Twin Cities, home to the nation’s largest concentration of Somali-Americans. Federal agents have carried out operations linked to a high-profile fraud probe in recent weeks. Protests erupted in Minneapolis after a federal immigration agent fatally shot a woman during an enforcement action earlier this month.
Administration officials and Trump allies have tied the TPS decision to concerns about fraud and public safety. Some claims regarding links between Somali-Americans and militant groups, however, have not been substantiated in court.
Opposition formed quickly. Local officials in Minneapolis and St. Paul filed a lawsuit challenging federal immigration actions, characterizing them as discriminatory and harmful to diverse communities. Human rights and immigrant advocacy organizations warned that conditions in Somalia remain volatile for returnees, citing ongoing conflict, drought and deepening humanitarian crises.
The termination sets a firm timeline for affected families and employers. Without congressional action or a court-ordered pause, TPS benefits will end in mid-March. Somali nationals who have relied on the status for work authorization and protection from removal now face narrow choices: secure an alternative legal pathway or prepare to leave.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
