On June 4, 2013, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a person who originally entered the U.S. illegally but has since been granted Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is eligible to adjust status to Lawful Permanent Resident. The U.S. government’s position was (and still is) that TPS is not a lawful nonimmigrant status and therefore a person granted TPS has not been admitted to the United States. Because the U.S. government takes this position with respect to TPS holders, USCIS has denied Adjustment of Status applications filed by people who entered the United States illegally but were later granted TPS.
However, the Sixth Circuit disagreed in its decision last year and remanded the case to the District Court for the Western District of Washington. The American Immigration Council (AIC) and the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project (NWIRP) have now filed amici curiae urging the District Court to reach the same conclusion and hold that holders of TPS have been admitted to the United States and thus are allowed to adjust status to Lawful Permanent Resident.
Earlier this month, USCIS announced that it would extend TPS for nationals of Haiti.
