DHS Warns Revoked TPS Folks: No More 'De Facto Amnesty'; but When Do the Removals Start?

It's been over a year of court battles as the Trump administration has sought to put immigration law back at the center of immigration enforcement, without the add-ons and extensions. The lower courts systematically blocked the Trump administration's decisions, while the higher courts read, interpreted, and, through a lot of back and forth, rendered decisions based on the Constitution and the law. The bottom line: Enforcement of the nation's immigration laws is largely the purview of the executive branch, and the executive branch and its designated agency, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), have broad authority to determine who gets to come into our country, under what circumstances, and whether they get to stay. The executive and its agents also get to determine whether a humanitarian program it established should be sunset or removed altogether. 

Which brings us to the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program that every president — Democrat and Republican — from Clinton to GW Bush to Obama and Biden has used as a form of de facto amnesty. As RedState reported, a 2024 memo showed Democrat lawmakers and stakeholders practically begged the Biden administration to use TPS to not only add more countries to the program, but to thwart the incoming Trump administration's efforts to sunset TPS status for existing countries.

The target list included:

• 455,000 Venezuelans
• 464,000 Nicaraguans
• 600,000 Ecuadorians
• 1.5 million Guatemalans
• Tens of thousands more from Ukraine, Afghanistan, and Sudan

De facto amnesty by executive decree. pic.twitter.com/9ClyYZmiFl

— Senator Eric Schmitt (@SenEricSchmitt) July 23, 2026

DHS General Counsel James Percival rightly called the program a "bait and switch." Americans are told we have to help these immigrants temporarily because of the dangerous circumstances and unlivable conditions due to one disaster or another. Then, when the administration attempts to enforce that temporary nature, they are told that they have become a part of the community, so we have to find a way to make their status permanent.

WATCH:

As I explained on @NEWSMAX with @CarlHigbie last night, these TPS designations were a bait and switch and a grift on the American people. pic.twitter.com/FYVntmDopt

— James Percival (@DHSGenCounsel) August 19, 2026

It is a huge grift, and on Tuesday, another ruling came down to help bring it to a close. U.S. District Court Judge Brian Murphy lifted his stay order that had blocked the termination of TPS for Ethiopians.

All TPS terminations are now in effect. Every defiant judge has backed down, and the DHS has already begun arresting former TPS holders.

With this, President Trump has stripped the unnecessary lawful status from over 1 million migrants. https://t.co/RnUpxV9Zmg pic.twitter.com/Uvny23PAZd

— Prowler (@derzum_) August 18, 2026

However, as my colleague Kyle Becker reported, the judge did allow plaintiffs to proceed with a challenge alleging racial or national-origin discrimination in the program's termination. Some attorneys say that the chances they will be able to succeed on the merits are thin, but the fact that this judge chose to leave that in place is continued evidence that the activist judges are not about interpreting the law, but making it fit their preferred narrative.

Becker also wrote that this effort by the lower court activists to conform to the SCOTUS ruling on TPS is a signal that the days of using TPS to make an end-run around immigration law are all but over:

In other words, the “T” in “TPS” means “temporary.” Judges are finally catching on. The government isn't constitutionally required to keep extending it simply because recipients benefit from it.

Ahh, benefits. That is the sole argument of every NGO, leftist, and activist, not to mention several Republicans and the majority of Democrat lawmakers: that allowing TPS recipients to stay in the U.S. benefits them. Aside from low-wage workers and holding a monopoly on employment they claim Americans are not willing to do, not many bother to offer evidence on how TPS recipients benefit America or the American people. 

Percival claimed in the interview above that DHS was working to quickly remove the now-former TPS recipients. If this can be done, the remaining legal claim for Ethiopian TPS recipients may not matter. In the meantime, DHS is issuing daily warnings to the former TPS recipients that it's time to go home.

Termination of TEMPORARY Protected Status is now in effect for the following countries.

For those with terminated TPS: LEAVE NOW or be DEPORTED. https://t.co/Pahpi5pL2Z https://t.co/gYXRJoBYA3

— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) August 14, 2026

However, little information has come down on actual removals. Remember in late July when Haitian TPS recipients were supposed to be scheduled for deportation? Did that happen? Apparently no one knows.

This is problematic. Go to the comments on these DHS posts and other DHS social media, and the tone of the responses is not that we need to be compassionate and give them time; the sentiment is that we need to send them home NOW.

We need a dedicated feed of planes loaded and taking these illegals HOME.. Until then its all talk! Make it HAPPEN!

— WTP are BACK! (@TruthCharmed) August 19, 2026

As it should be. This nation has room for folks, but come correct or don’t come at all.

If you’re here illegally you should not be receiving any benefits besides one way ticket back to your country of origin. If u commit a crime while here illegally you should be banned 4 life.

— Rob (@robthedadbod76) August 19, 2026

Define "swiftly". How many and when? We will not stop asking for real numbers.

— Kathleen Bauer (@kmabauer) August 19, 2026

While voters may be in a malaise concerning the midterms, they haven't been asleep at the wheel over this. It is one of the major reasons Trump was swept back into office. After seeing how unchecked immigration has affected our country, along with other nations like the U.K., Germany, and Spain, Americans no longer have an appetite for amnesty or political excuses.

Understandably, DHS may want to keep all of this under wraps, because the activists, the Leftists, and the anarchists (but I repeat myself) are already calculating how they can create chaos and thwart any mass deportation efforts. Without a doubt, DHS is closely monitoring the CBP-HOME app to see who is taking advantage of what many consider a generous offer to self-deport. 

Here is what the agency is currently offering:

Deprioritized for detention and removal by ICE

Once non-criminal illegal aliens submit their intent to depart through the CBP Home Mobile App and pass vetting, they will be temporarily deprioritized by ICE for detention or enforcement action before their scheduled departure.

Financial and travel document assistance for those in need

Illegal aliens who register for voluntary self-departure through the CBP Home Mobile App will receive cost-free travel, a $2,600 exit bonus, and forgiveness of any failure to depart fines. Illegal aliens requesting assistance will have a timely departure arranged for them.

The CBP Home Mobile App allows illegal aliens to plan their return, including having an opportunity to depart in a timely manner – allowing illegal aliens to wrap up work, school, and personal matters and organize their return in an orderly and lawful way.

Leave safely, travel normally

The CBP Home program lets eligible aliens return home as regular travelers—without arrest, detention, or restraints. It’s a safe, orderly alternative that provides assistance and flexibility, not fear.

Forgiveness of Fines

You will have civil fines for failure to depart after a final order of removal or a voluntary departure order in the U.S. forgiven. You will not have to pay these fines.

The American people would like to see those CBP-HOME numbers too, with legitimate footage of planes full of former TPS recipients departing the country. As Sleepy Joe Biden once said in one of his horrendous speeches, "Our patience is wearing thin."

Editor’s Note: The 2026 Midterms will determine the fate of President Trump’s America First agenda. Republicans must maintain control of both chambers of Congress.

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