DHS ends temporary protected status for 1,400 Yemenis

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced Friday that it is terminating Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Yemeni nationals, ending a program that has shielded roughly 1,400 people from deportation since 2015.

The decision marks a significant policy shift for a population that has remained in the United States for nearly ten years under humanitarian protections tied to Yemen’s civil war and regional instability. TPS for Yemen will officially expire 60 days from the announcement, after which beneficiaries without another lawful immigration status will be subject to removal.

A Program Meant to Be Temporary

Temporary Protected Status was created by Congress to offer short-term relief to foreign nationals whose home countries are experiencing armed conflict, natural disasters, or extraordinary conditions that make safe return impossible. While TPS does not grant permanent residency or citizenship, it allows recipients to live and work legally in the U.S. for the duration of the designation.

Yemen was first designated for TPS in 2015 amid the outbreak of a devastating civil war involving Houthi forces, a Saudi-led coalition, and regional actors. Since then, successive administrations have extended the designation multiple times, citing ongoing violence and humanitarian concerns.

According to DHS, that assessment has now changed.

“After reviewing conditions in the country and consulting with appropriate U.S. government agencies, I determined that Yemen no longer meets the law’s requirements to be designated for Temporary Protected Status,” said Kristi Noem, the current Secretary of Homeland Security.

Voluntary Departure or Enforcement

Under the new policy, Yemeni TPS holders who lack another lawful basis to remain in the U.S. are being encouraged to self-deport within the 60-day wind-down period. DHS is promoting the use of the CBP Home app, which allows individuals to notify the government of their voluntary departure.

As part of that program, DHS says participants may receive:

• A complimentary plane ticket

• A $2,600 exit stipend

• Potential eligibility for future legal immigration pathways

After the 60-day period expires, DHS warned that individuals remaining without legal status may be subject to arrest and deportation.

National Security Framing

In announcing the termination, DHS framed the decision not only as a legal reassessment but as a matter of national interest and border enforcement consistency.

“Allowing TPS Yemen beneficiaries to remain temporarily in the United States is contrary to our national interest,” Noem said. “TPS was designed to be temporary, and this administration is returning TPS to its original intent.”

The department emphasized that TPS designations are not meant to evolve into de facto permanent residency programs, a concern that has increasingly surfaced in immigration debates as some country designations have lasted more than a decade.

A Broader Immigration Reset

The move comes amid a broader recalibration of immigration policy, with DHS signaling tighter enforcement, narrower humanitarian exemptions, and greater emphasis on voluntary compliance and removals.

Supporters of the decision argue that prolonged TPS designations undermine the rule of law and blur the line between temporary protection and permanent settlement. Critics counter that conditions in Yemen remain unstable, citing continued conflict, economic collapse, and humanitarian shortages.

Regardless of where the debate lands, the announcement represents one of the clearest examples yet of the administration’s intent to wind down long-standing temporary protections and reassert statutory limits on humanitarian immigration programs.

For the roughly 1,400 Yemenis affected, the clock is now ticking.