Judge Lifts Block on TPS Termination for 350,000 Haitians After SCOTUS Ruling

The August 5, 2026 order by U.S. District Judge Ana C. Reyes marks a critical juncture at the intersection of immigration law and administrative law, as the Supreme Court's recent holding that TPS terminations are committed to agency discretion strips federal courts of jurisdiction to review such actions. This case illustrates the expansive reach of the “committed to agency discretion by law” exception under the APA, leaving advocates with few judicial remedies to challenge politically motivated TPS terminations.

The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, per Judge Ana C. Reyes, lifted its injunction that had previously halted the Trump administration’s termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for approximately 350,000 Haitian nationals. The August 5, 2026 order directly follows a June 2026 Supreme Court ruling in which the justices voted 6-3 that TPS designation decisions, including terminations, are not subject to judicial review under federal immigration law. The immediate effect is that TPS protections for Haiti are no longer in force, exposing this population to potential deportation to a country the State Department ranks as Level 4—its most dangerous advisory due to “crime, kidnapping, terrorism, unrest, and limited health care.”

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Reyes, lifted its injunction that had previously halted the Trump administration’s termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for approximately 350,000 Haitian nationals.

The legal saga began earlier this year when Judge Reyes, in a February 2, 2026 order, blocked the administration from ending TPS for Haiti, likely reasoning that the termination was arbitrary and capricious given Haiti’s dire conditions. That decision was upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. However, the Supreme Court’s June decision, likely in a case like Trump v. Department of Homeland Security or a similar challenge, held that the Secretary of Homeland Security’s TPS designations and terminations are committed to agency discretion and explicitly shielded from judicial review by statute. The ruling invoked the Administrative Procedure Act’s exception for agency actions “committed to agency discretion by law” and the Immigration and Nationality Act’s specific provision that TPS determinations are not subject to review. As a result, the Supreme Court reversed the lower court’s judgment, and on August 5, Judge Reyes acknowledged that her earlier injunction “is no longer in effect.”

This outcome is a sweeping victory for the executive branch’s immigration enforcement prerogatives and a major setback for advocates who argued that the administration’s termination was politically motivated and ignored on-the-ground realities in Haiti. The Supreme Court’s decision effectively immunizes TPS terminations from any meaningful judicial check, meaning that even if conditions in the designated country remain dangerous, the President can end protections at will, subject only to internal agency procedures. The implications extend beyond Haiti: the same ruling could affect TPS holders from Syria, El Salvador, Honduras, and other nations, totaling over 500,000 individuals, if the administration moves to terminate those designations. Indeed, the articles note that the decision “could impact immigrants from Haiti, Syria and other countries.”

From a labor market perspective, the termination will have significant economic consequences. FWD.us, an immigration advocacy group, estimated that about 200,000 Haitian TPS holders are employed in the U.S., with large concentrations in health care, food service, warehousing, retail, and long-term caregiving—sectors already grappling with worker shortages. Their forced departure could strain these industries, particularly in states like Florida, New York, and Massachusetts with large Haitian communities. For employers, the loss of authorized workers means increased costs, possible disruptions, and challenges in recruiting replacements, especially for low-wage essential jobs.