Workers with Temporary Protected Status: Protect Your Right to Work (English)

U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, Immigrant and Employee Rights Section, October 2018
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
CIVIL RIGHTS DIVISION
IMMIGRANT 	EMPLOYEE RIGHTS SECTION	&
emporary Protected Status (TPS) gives
workers a temporary right to remain in the
United States. If you have TPS, you are
eligible for a work permit, also called an
Employment Authorization Document
(EAD). Those with Deferred Enforced Departure
(DED) also have this right to work, and the
information below generally applies to workers with
DED in addition to workers with TPS. The law
governing TPS is found at 8 U.S.C. § 1254(a) and
regulations are at 8 C.F.R. 244. The President can
authorize DED as part of the President’s power to
conduct foreign relations. Regulations on the
categories of people eligible for work permits are at
8 C.F.R. 274a.12.
Your EAD may continue to be valid past its
expiration date.
The government may extend TPS for your country.
The government announces TPS extensions in the
Federal Register. If the government extends TPS for
your country, the Federal Register will notify you that
you must re-register for TPS and apply for a new EAD
to keep working.
Sometimes, the government also extends TPS EADs
through the Federal Register. The Federal Register
notice will tell you whether your EAD automatically
has a new expiration date so you can keep working
while you wait for your new EAD. Go to
www.uscis.gov/tps for information on TPS for your
country and the Federal Register notice.
If the government does not automatically extend
your EAD through the Federal Register notice but you
have applied to renew your TPS EAD, you may be able
to keep working after the expiration date on your
EAD, while you wait for your new EAD.
WORKERS WITH TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS
PROTECT YOUR RIGHT TO WORK
T For 180 days after your EAD expiration date, you can
present your TPS (but not DED) EAD with the I-797C
receipt notice showing that the government received
your EAD renewal application. If the Federal Register
notice automatically extends your EAD, you do not
have to show an I-797C with your EAD to keep
working. For more information on automatic
extensions of EADs, read this USCIS Fact Sheet, the
Handbook for Employers on Completing the Form
I-9, and 8 C.F.R. 274a.2(b)(1)(vii). You can also call
the Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) for
more information.

U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, Immigrant and Employee Rights Section, October 2018
This flyer is not a final agency action, has no legally binding effect, and may be rescinded or modified at the Department’s
discretion, in accordance with applicable laws. This flyer does not establish legally enforceable responsibilities beyond
what is required by the terms of the applicable statute, regulations, or binding judicial precedent.
Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER)
1-800-255-7688
www.justice.gov/ier
Calls can be anonymous and language services are
available.
TTY 1-800-237-2515
Your EAD is valid until the end of the EAD
extension period.
If you have an automatically-extended EAD, your
EAD or the combination of your EAD and I-797C are
valid Form I-9 documentation until the end of the
EAD extension period. You can find more
information about this by contacting IER and at
8 C.F.R. 274a.2(b)(1)(vii). If your employer does not
accept your documentation or asks for additional
documents, call IER and we may be able to help.
Depending on the facts, this may also violate the
law IER enforces at 8 U.S.C. § 1324b(a)(6).
By the end of the EAD extension period, you need
to show your employer you are allowed to
continue working.
When the EAD extension period ends, that EAD is
no longer valid. Under a different law
(8 U.S.C. § 1324a), your employer needs to see
another document for the Form I-9 to see
whether you are authorized to work. By the end
of this extension period, you should have your new
EAD. You may show your employer that document
or any other acceptable List A or List C document.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
1-800-375-5283
www.uscis.gov/tps
TTY 1-800-767-1833