A US federal appeals court on Monday rejected the Trump administration’s attempt to revoke the temporary legal status of hundreds of thousands of migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.

The Boston-based 1st US Circuit Court of Appeals declined to stay a previous ruling by District Judge Indira Talwani, which blocked the Department of Homeland Security’s decision to abruptly end a two-year parole programme granted under former President Joe Biden.

Judge Talwani, appointed by President Barack Obama, ruled on 25 April that the department’s move was “categorical” and failed to offer the required case-by-case reviews. She also criticised the legal rationale used to justify the termination of parole and work authorisations for the affected migrants.

The Trump administration had argued that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem possessed the authority to revoke parole en masse, and that the government was being forced “to retain hundreds of thousands of aliens in the country against its will.”

However, the three-judge appellate panel—all appointed by Democratic presidents—disagreed, stating that Noem had not shown a “strong likelihood” of success in appealing the lower court’s injunction.

Karen Tumlin, a lawyer for the Justice Action Center, which brought the lawsuit on behalf of the affected migrants, welcomed the decision, calling the administration’s actions “reckless and illegal.”

The administration had earlier announced, via a notice in the Federal Register on 25 March, its intent to terminate the parole and work rights of approximately 400,000 migrants. That policy was part of President Trump’s broader crackdown on immigration and attempt to undo Biden-era protections, including the legal entry of migrants from countries such as Ukraine and Afghanistan.

In response to the court ruling, Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin reaffirmed the administration’s stance, saying: “The Trump administration is committed to restoring the rule of law to our immigration system. No lawsuit, not this one or any other, is going to stop us from doing that.”

The administration now faces the option of escalating the case to the US Supreme Court. Meanwhile, the court’s decision ensures temporary legal protection and continued work authorisation for hundreds of thousands of migrants as the legal battle continues.

Follow us on: