Update — September 9, 2026. The date has arrived and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) still has not published any determination in the Federal Register: neither a termination nor an extension. The statute has not changed (8 U.S.C. § 1254a(b)(3)(C)): without a determination published 60 days in advance, the designation is automatically extended six months, through March 9, 2027. But no agency has acknowledged that, and USCIS still lists September 9 as the expiration date in its employer notices, so do not make decisions assuming that extension. If your work authorization rests on TPS alone, get advice before leaving a job, signing any document, or traveling abroad.
If you hold Salvadoran TPS, you have spent weeks reading that “TPS ends on September 9.” The date is real, but it does not mean what is circulating.
At Campos Law Firm, we closely monitor developments in U.S. immigration policy to protect our clients’ rights and future. Here is what is documented and what to review right now.
What is actually happening?
September 9, 2026 is the date the 18-month extension of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for El Salvador expires, published in the Federal Register on January 17, 2025 and in effect since March 10, 2025. It is the end of a protection period, not a decreed termination.
As of this article, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has published no termination notice in the Federal Register: the record shows only the 2001 designation, the 2018 termination — rescinded in 2023 — and the January 2025 extension.
DHS told Telemundo 44 it “has not made an official announcement yet.” USCIS did publish, on August 12, 2026, an alert for employers: expired work permits are treated as extended through September 9, and that is the date to enter on Form I-9. That is employment compliance, not a termination notice.
Roughly 170,100 people hold the status, according to Congressional Research Service data as of March 31, 2025. It has existed since March 9, 2001, after the earthquakes, and has been extended eleven times: 25 years.
What does the law say, and what happens the day after?
The statute (8 U.S.C. § 1254a(b)(3)(A)) requires the Secretary to review country conditions and publish a determination at least 60 days before expiration — here, around July 11, 2026. It was missed. And the statute says what follows: absent a timely determination, the designation is automatically extended for six months (8 U.S.C. § 1254a(b)(3)(C)), to March 9, 2027.
But no one should plan their life on that: specialist Héctor Benítez, quoted by El Diario de Hoy, warns that it should not be assumed it will happen. No agency has acknowledged it, and the USCIS alert uses the verb “terminate”: the contradiction remains unresolved.
There is also a structural change. On June 25, 2026, in Mullin v. Doe, the Supreme Court held 6 to 3 that the TPS statute bars judicial review of designations, extensions, and terminations: suing over procedural defects, the strategy that saved Salvadoran TPS between 2018 and 2023, no longer works.
When it ends, a person reverts to the status held before, which for most was none: work authorization, protection from removal, and travel authorization are all lost. TPS was never a path to residence — it accrues no time toward a green card and forgives no entry without inspection — and that is how the statute has worked since 1990.
In your favor: years spent with TPS do not count as “unlawful presence” for the 3- and 10-year bars, because it is authorized stay. Time accrued before does count, and would resume accruing afterward.
What options do you still have?
TPS closes no other door.
- NACARA, the forgotten Salvadoran remedy: section 203 is still in force. If you arrived before December 19, 1990 and registered under the ABC settlement, or filed for asylum before April 1, 1990, you may qualify for a special cancellation: only 7 years of presence, the softer “extreme hardship” standard, and the burden of proof in your favor.
- A past trip with permission changes everything: Sanchez v. Mayorkas (2021) held that TPS is not an “admission” for adjustment of status, but since July 1, 2022 USCIS recognizes that someone who left on TPS travel authorization and was inspected on return is “inspected and admitted” for adjustment, even if they originally entered without inspection.
- The section 245(i) key: if you were the beneficiary of a family or employment petition filed on or before April 30, 2001, you may adjust inside the country despite an entry without inspection, paying a penalty fee.
- Family petition: a U.S. citizen spouse, or a citizen child over 21, can petition for you with no visa wait; many children of TPS holders born between 2001 and 2005 have already turned 21.
- Provisional waiver I-601A: for unlawful presence, for those who must attend a consular interview. It requires extreme hardship to a spouse or parent who is a citizen or resident: citizen children do not qualify.
- Asylum: if changed circumstances explain the delay; the end of TPS may be one, but act soon.
- Cancellation of removal, U and T visas, VAWA, and SIJS: depending on the case.
What to do this week
- Request your full file: a FOIA to USCIS on Form G-639 and your history at i94.cbp.dhs.gov; look for petitions filed before May 1, 2001 (with their priority date in the Visa Bulletin), a used travel permit, or a forgotten order.
- Update your address and prepare a family plan: Form AR-11 with USCIS and Form EOIR-33 with the court within 10 days (it is a legal duty), a power of attorney for the children, copies of documents with a relative, and your attorney’s number at hand.
- Do not leave without advice, and be wary of notarios and false documents: leaving can trigger a permanent bar with no waiver; in El Salvador a notary is a lawyer, in the United States they are not; and falsely claiming U.S. citizenship creates permanent inadmissibility.
Protect Your Future with Campos Law Firm
No one knows what DHS will do before September 9; what you can do is review your file and find the pathway that may have been waiting for you.
At Campos Law Firm we review your history from the beginning, including old petitions and trips taken with permission, and tell you what real options you have. Do not leave your immigration status to chance. Call us today at +1 (844) 922-6767 to schedule a free, confidential consultation in English or Spanish. Campos Law Firm: Legal Solutions in All Areas of Law.
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