Mullin V. Doe Explained: Why Courts Are Limited in Blocking TPS Terminations

The Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision in Mullin v. Doe lets the Department of Homeland Security proceed with ending Temporary Protected Status for Haiti and Syria. The ruling sharply limits lower courts’ ability to pause future terminations.

The cases affect approximately 350,000 Haitian recipients and 6,100 Syrian recipients. Their status and work authorization are now being unwound through shifting administrative deadlines.

The Court issued its decision on June 25, 2026, after hearing arguments on April 29, 2026. It consolidated the Haiti and Syria disputes under Mullin, Secretary of Homeland Security, et al. v. Doe et al., No. 25-1083, and Trump v. Miot, No. 25-1084.

The majority interpreted 8 U.S.C. § 1254a(b)(5)(A) to bar judicial review of nonconstitutional challenges to a country’s TPS designation, termination or extension. That sharply narrows the route plaintiffs used to obtain stays.

Constitutional claims remain possible in limited circumstances. The Court nevertheless concluded that the Haitian equal-protection claim was unlikely to justify interim relief.

Justice Samuel Alito wrote for the majority. The Court’s order vacated the lower-court stays that had kept the terminations from taking effect.

"This text [8 U.S.C. § 1254a(b)(5)(A)] is clear, and its plain meaning is very broad. There is no judicial review of any determination of the [Secretary of Homeland Security] with respect to the designation, or termination or extension of a designation, of a foreign state under this subsection."

Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown said the ruling “cleared the way for the administration to strip Temporary Protected Status from Haitian and Syrian nationals.”

Haiti and Syria face different termination dates and shifting work deadlines

Then-Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem announced Haiti’s termination on Nov. 28, 2025, and Syria’s on Sept. 19, 2025. Short administrative extensions and court proceedings affected the transition.

A certified Supreme Court order issued during the week of July 27, 2026, allowing the two terminations to take full effect immediately. The work-authorization dates changed as lower courts unwound existing injunctions.

The ruling also establishes a framework for other countries. Current TPS designations cover approximately 1.3 million people from 17 countries.

The decision closes the ordinary administrative-law challenge

Congress created TPS in 1990 to provide humanitarian relief to nationals whose countries face armed conflict or natural disasters. DHS can designate a country, extend its designation or terminate it when the statutory conditions change.

Syrian nationals in the first case and Haitian nationals in the second challenged the terminations under the Administrative Procedure Act. They argued that the decisions were arbitrary. The Haitian plaintiffs also alleged racial animus.

The Supreme Court held that the statute prevents courts from reviewing those nonconstitutional challenges to the secretary’s TPS decisions. As a result, a court generally cannot use the APA to suspend a termination while litigation proceeds.

The ruling does not eliminate every constitutional lawsuit. It does, however, make emergency relief harder to obtain when plaintiffs claim that a termination violates equal-protection guarantees.

Justice Elena Kagan dissented. She wrote:

"To preclude review of those determinations is of course to insulate critical matters from judicial scrutiny. [The Court] brushed aside compelling evidence that anti-Haitian bias may have influenced the administration’s decision."

The majority rejected the lower-court approach in the Haiti case. It found the equal-protection theory too unlikely to succeed at the interim-relief stage to keep the termination blocked.

DHS says the program can end when its temporary purpose expires

The administration defended the terminations by arguing that the program had been used beyond its temporary purpose. Some country designations, the government argued, had lasted for decades.

James Percival, general counsel of DHS, described the June 25 decision as one of three victories for the administration.

"These three rulings are all victories for the rule of law and common sense. [reaffirming] that Temporary Protected Status (TPS) was always supposed to be temporary and can be cancelled at the appropriate time."

Secretary Markwayne Mullin, who was sworn in on March 24, 2026, has overseen implementation of the Haiti and Syria terminations. He responded to inquiries from Rep. Tom Suozzi and Rep. Luz Rivas by suggesting that affected people pursue “alternative pathways” to lawful status, including family-based petitions.

Those options depend on individual facts. Eligibility rules, procedural requirements and immigration consequences can differ by pathway.

Senator Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., condemned the decision in a statement issued June 25, 2026.

"Trump’s hand-picked Supreme Court just cleared the way for him to deport hard-working, legal immigrants into imminent danger in Haiti, Syria, and other war-torn and gang-controlled countries. It’s horrific and lawless."

The ruling reaches families, employers and future designations

FWD.us says TPS holders contribute $29 billion annually to the U.S. economy and warned that terminations could add to labor shortages in critical industries.

The affected households include approximately 390,000 U.S. citizen children. Parents’ loss of status can therefore create a risk of family separation even when the children are citizens.

Reports dated July 28, 2026, said DHS was planning “massive raids” targeting former TPS holders in states including Ohio. The state is home to 14,000 Haitian TPS holders.

The decision is also likely to shape disputes involving other countries. El Salvador’s TPS designation was set to expire Sept. 9, 2026, and a decision was due by July 11, 2026. As of late July, no public announcement had been made.

Legal experts anticipated a termination announcement after the Supreme Court’s decision. That expectation is not itself an agency determination.

Lebanon followed a different path. DHS automatically extended Lebanon’s TPS through November 27, 2026, because Secretary Mullin did not make a determination by the statutory 60-day deadline.

That extension illustrates the continuing role of statutory deadlines even after the Court restricted judicial review. A completed termination generally cannot be stopped through a nonconstitutional statutory or APA challenge, while a constitutional claim must still clear the demanding standard for emergency relief.

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