The Department of Homeland Security announced that Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Somalia will be extended and redesignated for 18 months from Sept. 18, 2024, to March 17, 2026.

The extension and redesignation respond in part to the continuing armed conflict that exposes those in Somalia to abuse, displacement, food insecurity, and disease. People in Somalia are also impacted by severe climate problems, including flood damage and resulting deteriorating infrastructure.

Somalians eligible for extensions must re-register and apply to extend their Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) during the 60-day period beginning July 22, 2024, and ending Sept. 20, 2024. By doing so, those individuals will be entitled to an automatic extension of their EADs until Sept. 17, 2025, if their current TPS-based EADs expire on Sept. 17, 2024, or March 17, 2023. Failure to timely apply could result in a loss of status.

Somalians eligible to make initial applications for TPS under the redesignation must have continuously resided in the United States since July 12, 2024. The redesignation period will run until March 17, 2026.

Detailed instructions on how to apply for extensions or initial applications can be found in the Federal Register. Students from Somalia will also be entitled to work authorization and a reduction in course load based on a showing of economic hardship.

Please call your Jackson Lewis attorney or reach out to the Jackson Lewis Immigration Practice Group at TPS@Jacksonlewis.com if you need assistance with work authorization, the employment verification process, or strategy options.

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Photo of Forrest G. Read IV Forrest G. Read IV

Forrest Read is a Principal in the Raleigh, North Carolina, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. He has extensive experience in both business immigration law and employment law and has particular focus in legal issues in graduate medical education (GME).

Mr. Read’s immigration practice…

Forrest Read is a Principal in the Raleigh, North Carolina, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. He has extensive experience in both business immigration law and employment law and has particular focus in legal issues in graduate medical education (GME).

Mr. Read’s immigration practice focuses on assisting employers in obtaining employment-based nonimmigrant visas (e.g., H-1B, L, O, TN) for foreign national employees and work-related immigrant (green card) visas, including PERM Labor Certifications, and advising employers on compliance with U.S. immigration laws and regulations. He has broad experience in advising large, mid-size and small employers on their various immigration needs and developing strategies to help them navigate through complex immigration issues. He also has particular experience in counseling employers in the health care industry and addressing immigration-related issues that arise for their broad range of health care professional employees (including advising on and obtaining employment authorization for medical residents and fellows and obtaining J-1 visa waivers for foreign national physicians completing their medical training in the United States). His immigration practice also includes defending employers in connection with Department of Labor H-1B and H-2B investigations.

Mr. Read’s employment law experience includes representing management, particularly academic medical centers in the GME context, in a wide array of workplace disputes and litigation before federal and state courts and administrative agencies, including matters related to discrimination, retaliation, harassment, disability, family and medical leave, various wage and hour issues, contracts, and intentional torts. He advises academic medical centers on the interplay between applicable academic law and employment law and the ramifications of what are divergent legal requirements and standards. Mr. Read also provides counsel with respect to the legal impact of competency standards for residents and trainees in GME, including situations involving discipline, remediation, and dismissal. He provides advice and guidance in the peer review process, including provision of verification and assessment of training in response to third party inquiries.

As a member of the Firm’s Corporate Diversity Counseling group, Mr. Read also has experience in providing assessments and making recommendations to corporate and institutional clients with respect to diversity and inclusion policies and initiatives, conducting related internal investigations, and shaping, developing and enforcing effective policies and initiatives to ensure consistency with client values and in furtherance of business goals and objectives.

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