Trump Administration Ended Afghan TPS Protections in July 2025, Leaving Thousands at Risk of Deportation

The Trump administration ended Afghanistan’s TPS designation on July 14, 2025, leaving more than 8,000 Afghans without that protection from deportation. The Department of Homeland Security had published its termination notice two months earlier.

A bill now before Congress would restore protection for eligible Afghans, but it has not been enacted. The proposed measure would offer a temporary status through July 1, 2029, subject to eligibility checks and screening.

The change affects Afghans who held TPS under the terminated designation. It does not itself determine the outcome of an individual immigration case or replace the narrower protections available under certain court orders.

Many evacuees came to the United States during the withdrawal from Afghanistan. Some have expired humanitarian parole, while applications for asylum, permanent residency and work authorization remain pending.

DHS ended the designation after its previous extension expired

DHS published the termination notice on May 13, 2025. The Biden administration had first designated Afghanistan for TPS in 2022, then extended and redesignated it for an 18-month period running from November 21, 2023, through May 20, 2025.

The department said its review found Afghanistan no longer met the conditions for the designation. Then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said, “This administration is returning TPS to its original temporary intent,” adding that Afghanistan had improved security and a stabilizing economy.

TPS, created by Congress in 1990, allows eligible people from designated countries to live and work in the United States for up to 18 months at a time. Extensions are possible. The termination removed that particular protection for Afghans covered by the designation.

Expired parole and pending applications leave many evacuees without settled status

Some Afghans who arrived during the U.S. withdrawal have struggled with asylum backlogs or with requirements for a Special Immigrant Visa, a route for people who served alongside U.S. military members. Many entered on humanitarian parole, which has expired for many beneficiaries.

Shawn VanDiver, founder of AfghanEvac, said applications for permanent residency, asylum and work authorization have remained pending for months. The group of Afghans in immigration custody facing removal includes women.

Afghan participant Florence Pouya warned that people returned to Afghanistan could face arrest or be forced into hiding. She also pointed to restrictions imposed on women under Taliban rule. Advocates and lawmakers say some Afghans who aided U.S. forces could face retaliation or persecution if returned.

Court orders cover named plaintiffs and other specifically identified Afghans

A federal judge’s temporary block on deporting detained Afghans to Afghanistan or Pakistan expired after covering removals through November 7. A separate order protects five Afghans named in a lawsuit and requires advance notice before removal attempts; it does not extend to every Afghan facing removal.

In a November 6 ruling, a federal judge in New York extended protection for a specifically identified group while its case proceeds. The order bars removal to Afghanistan, Pakistan or another third country and requires the government to notify those plaintiffs at least one week before a planned removal.

That ruling does not automatically cover all Afghans in the United States. The Supreme Court also ruled over the summer that courts had little power to review TPS suspensions affecting people from 13 different countries.

ICE has not confirmed the reported schedule for removals

A DHS court filing indicated that deportation flights could resume as early as November 16. The reported plan would send Afghans to Pakistan before returning them to Afghanistan.

Pakistan says the proposal remains under review, and the Taliban has opposed it. ICE has not publicly confirmed specific future removal operations. The agency says, “For operational security reasons and the safety of our officers, we would not confirm future removal operations.”

The proposed bill sets screening rules but offers no citizenship path

H.R. 9899, the Afghanistan TPS Act of 2026, would provide eligible Afghans TPS through July 1, 2029. Its terms would require applicants to meet TPS eligibility rules and pass screening.

• Applicants would undergo biometric, biographic and national-security screening.
• DHS would have 90 days to decide an individual application after required security and biometric checks are complete.
• The bill would not create a path to citizenship.

These are proposed terms, not protections currently in force. Afghans cannot receive status under this bill unless Congress enacts it.

The House petition needs 218 signatures before the bill can advance

Democratic Reps. Jason Crow and Sam Liccardo filed a discharge petition on November 9 to bring the bill to the House floor. They introduced the measure in July 2026 and introduced a special rule on October 1 to begin the signature process.

The petition had 21 signatures on its first day: 20 Democrats and Republican Don Bacon. It needs 218. If it reaches that threshold, House leaders must bring forward the procedural resolution allowing consideration, after which the bill would need a House majority vote.

Republican co-sponsors include Bacon, Maria Elvira Salazar, Joe Wilson and Morgan Luttrell. Independent Kevin Kiley also supports the measure. More than 50 organizations back it, including Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Veterans of Foreign Wars and Amnesty International USA.

A Senate version introduced in August has been referred to committee. Senate Republican Conference Chair Tom Cotton has opposed past efforts to provide status to Afghans who entered during the Biden-era evacuation.

The petition faces a difficult path. In April 2026, the House passed a Haitian TPS bill 224-204 after a discharge petition, but Senate Republicans blocked it and the White House had threatened a veto.

Veterans and Afghan allies are pressing lawmakers to act

AfghanEvac organized a Veterans Day promise walk to Capitol Hill on November 11. More than 150 veterans, frontline civilians and Afghan allies joined it to press for the bill.

VanDiver, a Navy veteran, said the United States had made a promise to Afghans who helped its forces. “We’re nothing without our word.” Crow, an Army veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, called protecting Afghan partners a moral and national-security imperative. Liccardo warned that removal could return allies to Taliban forces and urged immediate action.

There is no action available under the proposed bill yet. Watch for any confirmed removal operations under the reported schedule and for movement on H.R. 9899 in Congress.

This article provides general information and is not legal advice. Consult a qualified immigration attorney about your specific case.