USCIS Extends TPS for Nicaragua

Murali Bashyam

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it will extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for nationals of Nicaragua from the current expiration of Jul. 5, 2010 to the new expiration date of Jan. 5, 2012.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it will extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for nationals of Nicaragua from the current expiration of Jul. 5, 2010 to the new expiration date of Jan. 5, 2012.

Under the extension, individuals who have been granted TPS are eligible to re-register and maintain their status for an additional 18 months provided they remain otherwise eligible for TPS.   TPS does not apply to Nicaraguan nationals who entered the United States after Dec. 30, 1998.

To maintain TPS status, Nicaraguan TPS beneficiaries must re-register during the re-registration period from May 5 until July 6, 2010.  It is important to re-register as soon as the re-registration period opens to allow sufficient time for USCIS to complete all the routine background checks and further application processing.  Applications from Nicaraguan TPS beneficiaries will not be accepted before May 5, 2010.

USCIS will issue a new Employment Authorization Document (EAD) to eligible TPS beneficiaries who timely re-register and apply for EADs.  However, USCIS will automatically extend the validity of existing EADs held by Nicaraguan TPS beneficiaries until Jan. 5, 2011.

TPS beneficiaries must submit Form I-821, Application for Temporary Protected Status, to re-register.  Applicants seeking an extension of employment authorization must file Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, with the required fee.  If an individual is only seeking to re-register for TPS, the applicant must still file Form I-765 for data-gathering purposes; the filing fee is not required.  Re-registrants age 14 and older must submit the biometric fee.

To read an informative Question/Answer memo posted by USCIS on this TPS extension, please click here.

We will provide updates on our web site at www.bashyamspiro.com as they become available.


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