A federal judge in Boston lifted a stay on Somalia TPS, allowing the Trump administration to press ahead with ending protections for thousands of Somali nationals.
President Donald Trump won a significant immigration ruling Friday after a federal judge in Boston removed a legal block on the administration’s plan to end Somalia TPS. The decision lets the Department of Homeland Security move forward with terminating Temporary Protected Status for Somali nationals living in the United States, a change that could leave some without a lawful basis to remain in the country.
U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs lifted the stay that had stopped the termination from taking effect. Burroughs said she was bound by the Supreme Court’s June ruling in Mullin v. Doe, which sharply limited judicial review of certain decisions to end TPS designations. In her ruling, she said plaintiffs had made a convincing showing that they could suffer irreparable harm and that the balance of hardships and the public interest favored them, but she still concluded the high court’s decision left her little room to keep blocking the administration’s action.
The case stems from the Trump administration’s January announcement that it planned to terminate Somalia’s TPS designation. Then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said conditions in Somalia had improved enough to end the humanitarian protection. The ruling now allows that plan to proceed, affecting several thousand Somali nationals in the United States. Fox News Digital previously reported that 2,471 Somali nationals had TPS and another 1,383 had pending TPS applications.
TPS is a temporary immigration status the federal government can grant to nationals of countries facing war, disaster, or other dangerous conditions. It is designed to prevent deportations while those conditions persist. When the government ends a designation, people who do not have another lawful immigration status can become vulnerable to removal. For families who have built lives in the United States under that protection, the change can bring immediate uncertainty about work, housing, and long-term plans.
“A federal judge in Boston lifted a stay on Somalia TPS, allowing the Trump administration to press ahead with ending protections for thousands of Somali nationals.”
Burroughs had earlier blocked the termination in a lawsuit brought by four Somali nationals and two advocacy groups, including African Communities Together. After the Supreme Court ruling, the plaintiffs filed an amended complaint raising new constitutional claims and sought emergency relief to keep Somalia’s TPS protections in place. They argued the administration’s move was driven by racial and national-origin bias, citing Trump’s past descriptions of Somalis as “garbage” and “low IQ people.”
The judge issued an administrative stay earlier this month after the plaintiffs argued that ending Somalia TPS violated the Fifth Amendment. But in Friday’s decision, she said the Supreme Court’s guidance constrained her ability to continue holding up the termination. The result is another example of how the high court’s June decision has narrowed lower courts’ power to second-guess TPS decisions by the Trump administration.
The dispute also fits into a wider legal fight over temporary protections for migrants from several countries. The Supreme Court’s June ruling affected the scope of court review in similar cases, and the administration has been pressing ahead with efforts to end TPS in multiple instances. For Americans, the issue touches both immigration enforcement and the limits of judicial review over executive branch decisions. What happens next will turn on whether the plaintiffs pursue further relief and how quickly the administration carries out the termination of Somalia’s TPS designation.
The bottom line: Friday’s ruling gives Trump a clear path to end Somalia TPS for now, putting thousands of Somali nationals in the United States at risk of losing protected status.
Frequently asked questions
What did the judge decide in the Somalia TPS case?
U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs lifted a stay that had blocked the Trump administration from ending Somalia’s TPS designation. That allows the termination process to move forward.
Why did the judge say she had to lift the stay?
She said the Supreme Court’s June ruling in Mullin v. Doe limited her ability to keep blocking the administration’s action. She wrote that she was bound to view the case through that decision’s framework.
How many Somali nationals are affected?
Fox News Digital previously reported that 2,471 Somali nationals in the U.S. have TPS, and another 1,383 have pending TPS applications. The ruling affects several thousand people overall.
What arguments did the plaintiffs make against the termination?
The plaintiffs said the administration’s decision was driven by racial and national-origin discrimination. They pointed to Trump’s past comments about Somalis and filed new constitutional claims after the Supreme Court ruling.
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