US House votes to extend temporary protections for Haitians in Trump rebuke

The United States House of Representatives has voted to extend temporary immigration protections for some 350,000 Haitians living in the country, in a break with President Donald Trump.

Ten Republicans joined the Democratic majority in Thursday’s vote, which passed by a margin of 224 to 204.

The bill would allow Haitians already in the US to keep their Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for three additional years, due to violence and instability in the Caribbean country.

The measure will now proceed to the US Senate, where it faces uncertain prospects. If it passed, Trump would almost certainly veto the bill.

“This is a monumental victory in a long-fought battle to protect the safety, dignity, and humanity of our Haitian neighbors,” Democratic Representative Ayanna Pressley, the co-chair of the House Haiti Caucus, said in a statement.

“Democrats and Republicans alike have come together to support our Haitian neighbors not just because this is good, commonsense policy, but because it is the right, humane thing to do.”

The bill advanced on Thursday through a bipartisan discharge petition, a legislative tool that allows lawmakers to bypass the House’s Republican leadership and force a vote.

Trump’s opposition

But the bill’s progress tees up a potential clash with the White House.

Trump and his officials have repeatedly attempted to roll back temporary immigration protections on the basis that previous administrations had exceeded their authority in granting extensions.

The push comes as part of Trump’s wider effort to restrict immigration into the US.

TPS is designed to shield foreign nationals who are already in the country from deportation. It is granted when their countries of origin are facing temporarily unsafe conditions, including natural disasters and conflicts. It also confers temporary work authorisation to successful applicants.

Last year, the Trump administration made several efforts to end TPS for Haitians, citing US “national interests”.

In June, for instance, it said the designation would expire in August. Then, in November, it renewed its intentions to end the programme, calling the move a “vote of confidence” in Haiti’s government.

The Caribbean nation has suffered from high levels of violence and political instability since the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in 2021.

The period following his death saw powerful gangs expand their influence on the island, seizing control of much of the capital of Port-au-Prince.

The State Department has previously warned US citizens not to travel to Haiti “due to the risk of crime, terrorism, kidnapping, unrest, and limited health care”.

Advocacy groups have warned that the fear of deportation has become a strain on Haitian migrants living in the US. They called on Congress to act to protect the vulnerable group.

“We are asking: Where will you be? On the right side of history? Or continuing to cause trauma to people who are asking for nothing other than safety and protection?” asked Guerline Jozef, the executive director of the Haitian Bridge Alliance, during a news conference outside of the Capitol.

This month, the US Supreme Court is set to consider a fast-track case weighing the administration’s request to move forward with the revocation of deportation protections for Haitians and Syrians.