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A federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration's plan to end the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for South Sudanese citizens in the United States, a move that would have left hundreds of beneficiaries facing deportation starting in January 2026, according to Reuters.
District Judge Angel Kelley, in Boston (Massachusetts), granted an emergency request filed by several South Sudanese citizens and an immigrant advocacy group to prevent the expiration of TPS.
The program was scheduled to end on January 6, 2026, after which approximately 300 citizens of South Sudan who live and work legally under TPS —or with pending applications— would become eligible for deportation, according to the report.
Kelley issued an administrative suspension that halts the policy while the litigation continues.
In his statement, he warned that allowing the decision to take effect before the court examines the case "would have an immediate impact" by stripping beneficiaries of their legal status, which could lead to "imminent" deportations.
He also noted that the consequences are "significant and far-reaching" and require a careful review of the merits.
The lawsuit was filed by four migrants from South Sudan along with African Communities Together, a nonprofit organization.
They claimed that the measure from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was illegal and would expose them to being returned to a country undergoing multiple humanitarian crises.
Response from DHS and the Government's Argument
The spokesperson for the DHS, Tricia McLaughlin, criticized the court decision and stated that the ruling ignores the constitutional and statutory authority of the president.
He also stated that the TPS for South Sudan "was never intended to be a de facto asylum program."
In another cited statement, McLaughlin claimed—without providing evidence—that there is a "renewed peace" in South Sudan and that "now is the right time" to finalize a designation that he said was always intended to be temporary.
Reuters reminds that the conflict has impacted South Sudan since its independence in 2011. Although the civil war formally ended in 2018, fighting has continued in large areas of the country; the report states that the conflict has resulted in approximately 400,000 deaths.
It also indicates that the U.S. State Department advises its citizens not to travel there.
The ruling represents a temporary victory for immigrant advocates and a setback for the broader effort by the Trump administration to restrict the humanitarian program.
The report positions it as part of a series of challenges against similar measures aimed at removing protections for citizens from other countries, including Syria, Venezuela, Haiti, and Nicaragua.
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