The U.S. Department of Justice has asked the Supreme Court of the United States to allow the federal government to proceed with plans to end deportation protections for more than 350,000 Haitian immigrants currently living in the United States under Temporary Protected Status (TPS). The request, filed on Wednesday, represents the latest step in a series of legal disputes over the government’s attempt to terminate TPS designations for several countries. If the protections are lifted, many Haitians who currently benefit from the program could eventually face the risk of deportation.

TPS is a humanitarian immigration program that allows nationals from countries experiencing armed conflict, natural disasters, or other extraordinary conditions to live and work temporarily in the United States. Haiti first received TPS protection in 2010 after a catastrophic earthquake devastated the country. The disaster killed more than 300,000 people and left large portions of the nation’s infrastructure in ruins. In response, the U.S. government granted Haitian nationals temporary protection from deportation while the country struggled to recover.

The Supreme Court has already permitted the administration to scale back similar TPS protections for migrants from Venezuela, while a separate case involving immigrants from Syria is still awaiting a decision. Efforts to end Haiti’s TPS status date back to the first administration of Donald Trump. At that time, the government attempted to terminate the designation, but the move became tied up in lengthy legal challenges and was never fully implemented before Trump left office.

After returning to the presidency, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced new plans to end Haiti’s TPS designation, with the change scheduled to take effect on February 3. She argued that the decision reflects confidence in Haiti’s progress and supports broader policy goals of encouraging stability and self-reliance in the country.

However, five Haitian nationals filed a lawsuit challenging the policy. Last month, U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes temporarily blocked the move, citing concerns that the decision may have been influenced by improper factors. The Justice Department now argues that the ruling could weaken the federal government’s authority over immigration policy and interfere with executive decision-making.