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Defending Immigrants/Policy & Research/Immigration/National/Economic/Administrative Policy

Temporary Protected Status
protects families while also boosting the U.S. economy

Newly updated analysis finds that TPS helps protect hundreds of thousands of families while also filling worker gaps in the U.S. workforce.

Temporary Protected Status provides significant protections for families, allowing them to support themselves, improve their economic condition, keep their families together, and more fully participate in their local communities.

New FWD.us estimates, based on analysis of census and other government data, show nearly 1.3 million individuals, as of early 2025 and at the start of the second Trump administration, are Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders, a form of immigration relief that provides work authorization and deportation protections for those whose home countries are very unsafe for return. According to data as of early 2025, TPS holders live with 390,000 U.S. citizen children, and more than 410,000 U.S. citizen adults, using their legal work authorization to support their families and communities.

TPS holders contribute about $29 billion annually to the U.S. economy, in addition to the payment of $7.8 billion in combined federal, payroll, state, and local taxes. And, since 2001, TPS holders have contributed an estimated $262 billion in total, actual dollars to the U.S. economy. This includes an estimated $20 billion contributed to Social Security during the past 25 years, helping sustain the national Social Security account for all Americans.

TPS holders are boosting the U.S. economy. An estimated 830,000 TPS holders are working in the U.S. labor force, including 130,000 in construction, 130,000 in wholesale and retail trade, 120,000 in leisure and hospitality, 110,000 in transportation, warehousing and utilities, 110,000 in business services, and 85,000 in manufacturing.

Detailed estimates of economic and labor force impacts of TPS holders from Haiti are available here.

Since Congress established TPS more than three decades ago, TPS recipients have used the program’s work authorization to support themselves and to contribute enormously to the U.S. workforce and economy. For example: some 89% of TPS holders from El Salvador and 84% from Honduras—all of whom have lived in the U.S. for more than 20 years—participate in the labor force. These labor force participation rates of long-term TPS holders are considerably higher than the U.S. labor force overall (about 62%), and are on par with the U.S. labor force in their prime working years of 25 to 54 years old (about 84%).

Video Image

Evelyn's Story

Meet Evelyn, a TPS holder from El Salvador who has lived in California for three decades. She works as an organizer for Central American Resource Center in Los Angeles, where she advocates for a pathway to citizenship for immigrants like herself.

Current TPS designations are under severe scrutiny during the current Trump administration. For example, the administration has successfully terminated several TPS designations, including those for Afghanistan, Cameroon, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Yemen. The administration has also attempted to terminate TPS designations for Burma (Myanmar), Ethiopia, Haiti, South Sudan, and Syria, but those terminations are currently being stayed by the courts.

TPS provides lifesaving relief for those whose home countries are very unsafe

Congress established the Temporary Protected Status program as part of the Immigration Act of 1990. TPS is currently administered by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). 

Since TPS was established, new designations have been issued 33 times by Republican and Democratic presidents, including six times during the George H.W. Bush administration, ten times during the Clinton administration, twice during the George W. Bush administration, seven times during the Obama administration, and eight times during the Biden administration.

Source: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, "Temporary Protected Status," https://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/temporary-protected-status.
Counts of redesignations and extensions include only formal redesignations and extensions of the TPS designation, but do not include automatic extensions of documentation or benefits.
For countries with active designations, we have listed the date of termination as the date on which the most recent designation, redesignation, or extension is scheduled to expire. Please note that these dates could change if the designation is terminated, extended, or redesignated. “Unknown” refers to uncertainty surrounding a potential termination date because of ongoing court action subsequent to an attempted termination.

Immigrants can apply for TPS if Congress or the Secretary of Homeland Security issues a designation that “conditions in the country temporarily prevent the country’s nationals from returning safely.” Many TPS recipients originally entered the U.S. as temporary immigrants or visitors, individuals seeking humanitarian relief, or without immigration status.

For more information on Temporary Protected Status, see our TPS blog: 5 things to know.

Upon registration with and approval by USCIS, TPS holders are protected from deportation and can receive work authorization. Only individuals already in the U.S. when a designation is announced are eligible to receive TPS. The program is not a substitute for refugee or asylum protections, which provide permanent relief to individuals who are actively fleeing dangerous conditions and need to permanently resettle; TPS is instead a temporary relief for individuals who are already in the U.S. and who cannot safely return home.

Many TPS holders have lived in the United States for many years, setting down roots and building families here. As a result, many TPS recipients are deeply ingrained into American families and communities. Whether these families will be able to remain safe and together is inextricably bound to their loved ones’ TPS protections.

TPS holders are crucial contributors to our economy, their communities and their families. Congress and the administration should do everything in their power to keep TPS holders safe by letting them remain and work in the U.S. 

This report reflects estimates based on analysis of 2024 data and the Temporary Protected Status program as of March 2025. Estimates may be out of date due to subsequent changes to TPS designations and eligibility.
Video Image

Wilna's Story

Meet Wilna, a mother, Haitian TPS holder and a community leader working every day to secure immigration relief for her family and for her community in Florida.

Population estimates in this report reflect TPS holders as of March 31, 2025, according to Congressional Research Service figures. Immigration status assignments using the 2024 American Community Survey (ACS) provide the base data for all other estimates, including U.S. citizens living with TPS holders and the economic contributions of TPS holders. (See our methodology for more information on the 2024 immigration status assignments.) 

Annual contributions to the U.S. economy are based on spending power, or total income after the payment of federal, payroll, state, and local income taxes in 2024 dollars. Total contributions since 2001, however, are actual dollars contributed based on total, gross income before the payment of taxes. These estimates were calculated by determining the average incomes of TPS-eligible individuals in each year since 2001 by nationality in the American Community Survey annual series and multiplied by the number of TPS holders for each nationality group and in each year as recorded by government figures. Social Security estimate is based on the total FICA withholding percentage for Social Security and Medicare (total 7.65%) as contributed by TPS holders, not including employer contributions.

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