The Trump administration will end a humanitarian program, known as Temporary Protected Status (TPS), for Salvadorans. After September 2019, nearly 200,000 Salvadoran TPS beneficiaries will no longer have the permission to stay in the United States.

TPS is a temporary immigration status granted to eligible nationals of a country designated for TPS under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), or to eligible persons without a nationality who had resided in the designated country.

TPS was granted due to a destructive earthquake in El Salvador in 2001. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) states on its website that “the substantial disruption of living conditions caused by the earthquake no longer exist.”

DHS also suggests Salvadorans should take the rest of the time to either leave the U.S. or seek alternative lawful immigration status in the United States, if eligible.

“From student housing perspective, any individual who has registered for at least one credit in Iowa State is eligible living in the student housing areas,” said Pete Englin, Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs and Director of Residence at Iowa State University.

“There are different options that are available to the students from affected countries whom will be contacted by the office of International Students and Scholars,” Englin said.  

Englin discussed the relation between students who receive TPS and the university.

“We have students who have been under TPS for decades at Iowa State. As long as they are able to stay registered we are happy to serve them, and our history with those students has been very positive,” Englin said. “We will be sad and disappointed to not see their ability to continue as Iowa State students.”

“There may be a period of time where they can return home before the termination date and apply for a student visa,“ attorney Michael Levine of Student Legal Services said.

However, there may be a problem for students who are not financially well off, because they need to provide the university proof that they are able to pay the tuition by themselves or by their family members.

“My principle advice for someone who might be impacted would be to consult with an immigration consultant to determine if there is any other alternatives or immigration options that might be available to them,” Levine said.

According to the Center for Migration Studies, Salvadoran beneficiaries have 192,700 American-born children, 88 percent of which are part of the American workforce, 25 percent higher than the national average.

Levine gave his advice for Salvadoran families who are affected by the program termination.

“The family have to look into their own circumstances to see if there is any remedy that might available and try to find immigration attorney and family law attorney to combine both areas of the law,” Levine said.

For current TPS recipients, Salvadorans will lose protection in September 2019; Hondurans will find out their fate in July; Haitians have already been informed their TPS will end.

These are the three main TPS protected countries, which include 298,000 beneficiaries in total.