United States | TPS for South Sudan automatically extended

The designation of South Sudan for Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which was set to expire on May 3, 2025, has been automatically extended to Nov. 3, 2025.

Key Points:

• Under the TPS statute, if the Secretary of Homeland Security (Secretary) does not determine whether a foreign state continues to meet the conditions for designation for TPS at least 60 days before the current expiration of the country’s TPS designation, the period of designation is automatically extended for six months.
• The Secretary “was unable to make an informed determination on South Sudan’s designation by the March 4, 2025, statutory deadline due to the lack of an updated analysis of current country conditions in South Sudan.”
• Existing TPS beneficiaries do not need to re-register for TPS; their TPS is automatically extended through Nov. 3, 2025, if they continue to meet TPS eligibility requirements.
• The six-month extension of South Sudan for TPS is effective May 4, 2025, through Nov. 3, 2025.
• South Sudan nationals who already have an Employment Authorization Document (EAD) with an expiration date of May 3, 2025, or Nov. 3, 2023, will have their EAD automatically extended through Nov. 3, 2025, without any further action needed on their part.
• General information related to employment authorization for TPS beneficiaries and their employers can be found in the published Federal Register notice.

Additional Information: South Sudan was initially designated for TPS on Oct. 13, 2011, on the dual bases of ongoing armed conflict and extraordinary and temporary conditions that prevented nationals of South Sudan from safely returning. Following the initial designation, DHS extended and newly designated South Sudan for TPS in 2013, 2014 and 2016.

In 2017, 2019 and 2020, DHS extended the TPS designation for South Sudan, based on ongoing armed conflict and extraordinary and temporary conditions, and extended and newly designated TPS for South Sudan on the same bases in 2022. Most recently, in September 2023, DHS extended and newly designated South Sudan for TPS for 18 months based on ongoing armed conflict and extraordinary and temporary conditions, from Nov. 4, 2023, to May 3, 2025.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

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