Later this month, the Supreme Court will hear arguments on the Trump administration’s efforts to strip a humanitarian immigration benefit from Haitians and Syrians. It’s a case that will affect more than 350,000 people who live in the U.S. under a Temporary Protected Status (TPS), part of a much larger group that has grown into a significant economic driver.
Since 1990, the U.S. has allowed nationals of specific countries blighted by war or environmental disaster the right to live and work within its borders under TPS. Nearly 1.3 million people who currently live in the U.S. do so under TPS, and some for more than 20 years.
In that time, they have grown into an impressive economic force in their own right. Each year, TPS holders contribute $29 billion in spending power to the U.S. economy, and pay nearly $8 billion in taxes, according to a report published Tuesday by FWD.us, an advocacy policy research group focused on criminal justice and immigration.
Since 2001, TPS holders have injected $262 billion into the U.S. economy, the report found. But the group has still been caught in the crosshairs of President Donald Trump’s crackdown on immigrants and asylum-seekers in the U.S., regardless of their economic impact.
Trump has sought to slash TPS for multiple countries over the past year. In addition to Syria and Haiti, the administration has either ended or moved to end the designation for as many as a dozen nations, including nationals of countries in an active state of conflict, such as Somalia and South Sudan.
Some of the administration’s attempts have encountered resistance from Congress and courts. In February, a federal judge blocked an end to TPS for Haitian nationals, up to 350,000 of whom live in the U.S. Last week, House Republicans joined Democrats to force a vote on a bill that would extend Haitians’ eligibility for TPS by three years.
Trump’s attempts to slash TPS, which does not offer a pathway to citizenship, for multiple countries are part of the administration’s wider campaign to reduce immigration and increase deportations, a policy plan that has already led to a measurable economic drag on the U.S. Trump’s immigration policy is expected to shrink the country’s labor force by 6.8 million by 2028, and a total 15.7 million by 2035, according to the National Foundation for American Policy, a think tank focused on immigration and trade.
The impact of having fewer workers in immigrant-heavy sectors such as construction is likely to ripple throughout the economy. The immigrant workforce is often seen as complementary labor, employment that fills key gaps and drives consumer demand across the economy. Economists warn that the workforce reduction might lead to slower economic growth and higher inflation.
The implications stand out in FWD.us’s report. Of the nearly 1.3 million TPS holders, 830,000 are in the labor force, including large concentrations working in construction, retail, hospitality, transportation, and manufacturing. The report also found that long-term status holders from El Salvador and Honduras have labor-force participation rates of 89% and 84%, respectively, both above the overall U.S. labor-force participation rate, which is 62%, and roughly in line with prime-age workers aged 25 to 54.
As for status holders from Haiti and Syria, the Trump administration has appealed to the Supreme Court, which is scheduled to hear arguments on TPS eligibility on April 29, a ruling that could shape outcomes for nationals of multiple other countries awaiting court decisions on their TPS eligibility.
