A U.S. Appeals court yesterday upheld a lower court order delaying the Trump administration’s attempt to terminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Syrian nationals, preserving legal protections for over 6,100 individuals, according to a press release from the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP).
The ruling, issued by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals on February 17, 2026, prevents the administration from stripping work authorization and potential deportation orders for Syrian TPS holders while a legal challenge proceeds. The initial attempt to finish TPS for Syria was slated to take effect on November 21, 2025, but was blocked by a district court following a lawsuit filed by IRAP, Muslim Advocates, and Van Der Hout LLP.
The plaintiffs argued the termination was unlawful given the ongoing instability and armed conflict within Syria. TPS is a temporary immigration status granted to nationals of designated countries experiencing extraordinary and temporary conditions, such as armed conflict, natural disaster, or epidemic. It allows individuals already in the United States to remain and work without fear of deportation.
“The courts yet again recognized the immediate danger facing thousands of Syrian immigrants if the Trump administration’s racist and unlawful attempt to terminate TPS for Syria is allowed to go into effect,” said Lupe Aguirre, Senior Litigation Attorney at IRAP. “The court order protecting thousands of Syrian community members from an immediate and catastrophic loss of legal status remains in effect and we will continue to fight this illegal termination in court along with the Trump administration’s other biased and illegal actions.”
Nargis Aslami, Legal Fellow at Muslim Advocates, stated, “The decision to uphold the postponement of the termination date is a critical win for the Syrian community, whose lives are not game pieces for the Trump administration to play with. The court sends a strong message: the systematic gutting of TPS across the board is unlawful and a product of politics, rather than compliance with the procedural mandates of the TPS statute. We will continue to fight for the dignity and protection of Syrians and all TPS holders targeted by the administration’s racist and anti-immigrant agenda.”
Marc Van Der Hout, Founding Partner at Van Der Hout LLP, added, “Once again another Federal Court has had to step in to do its part to stop an administration that has run amok. Trump and Stephen Miller have not hidden their goal to ‘Make America White Again’ and their terminations of TPS for the citizens of the many countries where they have done this is part of that campaign. We are thankful that courts across the country have stepped in to stop these unlawful terminations which would tear families apart and destroy the lives of thousands upon thousands of deserving people who have rightly been given lawful protection in the U.S. By both Republican and Democratic administrations alike until now.”
Farrah AlKhorfan, co-founder of Immigrants Act Now, welcomed the court’s decision, stating it “recognizes the profound consequences of taking away protection that allows Syrians to live, work, and contribute lawfully in the United States while the case proceeds.”
In December, the U.S. Government added Syria to its expanded travel ban and paused decisions on all pending immigration applications for Syrians, further restricting options for TPS holders seeking alternative immigration pathways, according to IRAP.
The lawsuit alleges the administration did not adequately consider the conditions in Syria when making its decision to terminate TPS. The case remains ongoing in the Southern District of Recent York.
