The US Department of Homeland Security has announced that the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) status for Afghan citizens will be abolished on July 12, 2025. This decision will affect thousands of Afghans living in the United States.
US Secretary of Homeland Security Christie Noem said in a statement that the decision was made after reviewing the situation in Afghanistan with interagency bodies. “The security situation in Afghanistan has improved and the economic situation is not such that it prevents citizens from returning to their country,” he said.
Temporary protection status is granted to migrants whose country is unable to accept their safe return due to political crisis, war or natural disasters. The special residence was first granted in March 2022 to a number of Afghan citizens.
In response to the decision, the Taliban’s foreign ministry welcomed the lifting of protected status for Afghan refugees, saying the United States had accepted the Taliban’s economic and security progress.
