On January 18, 2018, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it had opened the reregistration period for temporary protected status (TPS) holders from El Salvador and Haiti. As previously announced, TPS for El Salvador will expire on September 9, 2019, and TPS for Haiti will expire on July 22, 2019. Current TPS beneficiaries under these designations must reregister prior to March 19, 2018, to maintain their TPS through the respective effective termination dates.
Automatic 180-Day Extension for EAD/Work Authorization
USCIS will issue new Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) with expiration dates of September 9, 2019, for Haitians and July 22, 2019, for Salvadorans; however, due to potentially lengthy processing times, USCIS has provided automatic 180-day extensions for TPS reregistration of applicants whose EADs show an expiration date of March 9, 2018 (El Salvador) or January 22, 2018 (Haiti). USCIS announced that the 180-day automatic extension also applies to Haitian beneficiaries who have not yet received their new EADs after having applied for a new EAD during the previous reregistration period.
Procedure for Obtaining New EAD
To comply with the USCIS reregistration procedures, applicants must submit Form I-821, Application for Temporary Protected Status. Applicants who want to maintain work authorization need to concurrently file a completed I-765, Application for Employment Authorization along with the Form I-821.
Impact on Employers
TPS beneficiaries maintain work authorization for Form I-9 employment eligibility verification purposes. Through July 21, 2018 (Haitian TPS) and through September 5, 2018 (Salvadoran TPS), employers may accept the following combination of documents for TPS beneficiaries to confirm employment eligibility verification:
- Haitian TPS: TPS-related EAD (A-12 or C-19 Category) with a January 22, 2018 expiration date plus either (1) Form I-797C Receipt Notice bearing the 180-day automatic extension for TPS-related EADs; or (2) a copy of the January 18, 2018 Federal Register notice.
- Salvadoran TPS: TPS-related EAD (A-12 or C-19 Category) with a March 9, 2018 expiration date plus either (1) Form I-797C Receipt Notice bearing the 180-day automatic extension for TPS-related EADs; or (2) a copy of the January 18, 2018 Federal Register notice.
