US Ends Protected Status For Somali Immigrants

By Staff, Agencies

The administration of US President Donald Trump has announced the termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Somali immigrants, a move that will affect around 2,400 Somali nationals currently living and working in the United States.

The decision means Somali TPS holders will lose deportation protection when the designation expires on March 17.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem claimed that conditions in Somalia have improved sufficiently to no longer justify the status, despite continued fighting between Somali government forces and the Al-Qaeda-linked group Al-Shabaab.

“Allowing Somali nationals to remain temporarily in the United States is contrary to our national interests,” Noem said, stressing that the administration is prioritizing domestic concerns.

The move comes amid allegations of widespread fraud in Minnesota, which hosts the largest Somali diaspora in the US.

Trump has repeatedly accused some Somali immigrants of involvement in fraudulent childcare and healthcare schemes, claims that have prompted the deployment of thousands of federal immigration agents to the state.

Reports allege that misappropriated funds were transferred abroad through informal networks.

Speaking at an event in Detroit, Trump warned that any naturalized immigrant convicted of fraud could face citizenship revocation and deportation, stating that those who “rob Americans” would be prosecuted and expelled.

TPS allows foreign nationals to remain in the US temporarily when conditions in their home countries make return unsafe.

Since returning to office, Trump has moved to scale back the program, with several nationalities already losing or set to lose their protected status in early 2026.