TPS For Hondurans And Nicaraguans Extended

IMMIGRATION LAW & POLICY

Asylum, Refugee, and Other
Protected Statuses

TPS for Hondurans and Nicaraguans extended
Immigrants' Rights Update, Vol. 18, No. 8, December 22, 2004

The secretary of Homeland Security has published notices in the Federal Register extending the designation of Honduras and Nicaragua as countries whose nationals and residents currently in the United States qualify for temporary protected status (TPS). The designations, which had been due to expire on Jan. 5, 2005, will be in effect until July 5, 2006. The notices also automatically extend the validity of employment authorization documents (EADs) issued under the Honduran and Nicaraguan TPS programs until July 5, 2005.

To continue receiving the benefits of TPS—i.e., permission to remain temporarily in the United States and authorization to be employed in the U.S.—nationals of Honduras and Nicaragua (or individuals of no nationality who last habitually resided in either country) who have already been granted the status must reregister during the 60-day reregistration period that began on Nov. 3, 2004, and ends on Jan. 3, 2005.

TPS is granted to persons from countries that are designated by the secretary of Homeland Security as experiencing armed conflict, environmental disaster, or certain other conditions that prevent those persons from returning. The authority to make this designation was transferred from the U.S. attorney general to the secretary of the Dept. of Homeland Security as part of the 2002 legislation creating that department. The attorney general first made the TPS designations for Honduras and Nicaragua in Jan. 1999, in the wake of the devastation caused by Hurricane Mitch; and, prior to the current extension, they each had been extended four times, the latest extension notice having been published in the Federal Register on May 5, 2003. The DHS secretary now has decided to extend the designations for Honduras and Nicaragua for a further eighteen months. The current notices regarding the extension state that, “Due to continued reconstruction of infrastructure damaged by Hurricane Mitch, the Secretary of DHS has determined that an . . . extension is warranted because [Nicaragua and Honduras remain] unable, temporarily, to handle adequately the return of [their] nationals.”

To reregister under the extension, nationals of Honduras and Nicaragua (and individuals of no nationality who last habitually resided in those countries) previously granted TPS must file the following: (1) Form I‑821, Application for Temporary Protected Status; (2) Form I‑765, Application for Employment Authorization; and (3) a “biometric services fee” of $70 if the applicant is age 14 or older. Applicants who seek work authorization under the extension must submit the $175 filing fee or a “properly documented” fee waiver request with the Form I‑765; those who do not need work authorization must still submit Form I‑765, but without the fee.

Reregistrations for TPS under the current extension must be submitted on I-821 forms whose “Revision Date” is “7/30/04.” Submissions on older versions of the form will be rejected.

Late initial registration is also available under the extension. In order to apply, an applicant must:

be a national of Honduras or Nicaragua (or a person of no nationality who last habitually resided in either of those two countries);
have been continuously physically present in the U.S. since Jan. 5, 1999;
have continuously resided in the U.S. since Dec. 30, 1998; and
be admissible as an immigrant, except as otherwise provided under Immigration and Nationality Act sec. 244(c)(2)(A), and not ineligible under INA sec. 244(c)(2)(B).

Each applicant for late initial registration must also be able to show that, during the registration period beginning Jan. 5, 1999, and ending Aug. 20, 1999, he or she:

was a nonimmigrant or had been granted voluntary departure status or any relief from removal;
had an application for change of status, adjustment of status, asylum, voluntary departure, or any relief from removal pending or subject to further review or appeal;
was a parolee or had a request for reparole pending; or
was the spouse or child of an individual currently eligible to be a TPS registrant.

The notices also announce the automatic extension of the employment authorization documents of Hondurans and Nicaraguans who received EADs under the TPS program. The reason for this extension is that because of the large number of individuals eligible for the extension, many reregistrants will not receive new EADs until after their current ones have expired. The extension applies to Hondurans and Nicaraguans who currently hold EADs that expire on Jan. 5, 2005, and have the notation “A-12” or “C-19” (under “Category,” for Form I‑766 EADs) or “274a.12(a)(12)” or “274a.12(c)(19)” (under “Provision of Law,” for Form I‑688B EADs). Such cards are automatically valid now until July 5, 2005. However, the individuals who benefit from this extension still must reregister for TPS by Jan. 3, 2005, in order to have employment authorization throughout the extended TPS period.

When completing the I-9 employment eligibility verification (or reverification) process, employers must accept the above-described EADs of Honduran or Nicaraguan TPS beneficiaries as proof that they are employment-authorized. Employers who have questions may call the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Office of Business Liaison employer hotline at 1-800-357-2099; or they may call the employer hotline of the U.S. Justice Dept.’s Office of Special Counsel for Immigration Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC) at 1-800-255-8155 or (TDD) 1-800-362-2735. Employees or job applicants may call the OSC worker hotline at 1-800-255-7688 or (TDD) 1-800-237-2515. Information is also available on the OSC’s website: www.usdoj.gov/crt/osc/.

69 FR 64084–88 (Nov. 3, 2004) (Honduras);
69 FR 64088–91 (Nov. 3, 2004) (Nicaragua).