18-Month Extension of Temporary Protected Status for El Salvador

WASHINGTON – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that it will extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for nationals of El Salvador through Sep. 9, 2010. The extension will make those who have already been granted TPS eligible to reregister and maintain their status for an additional 18 months. There are approximately 229,000 nationals of El Salvador (and people having no nationality who last habitually resided in El Salvador) who are eligible for reregistration. TPS does not apply to Salvadoran nationals who entered the United States after Feb. 13, 2001.

The extension of TPS for El Salvador is effective Mar. 10, 2009 and will remain in effect through Sep. 9, 2010. Nationals of El Salvador (and people having no nationality who last habitually resided in El Salvador) who have been granted TPS must reregister for the 18-month extension during the reregistration period beginning the day it is published in the Federal Register and remaining in effect 90 days thereafter. Salvadoran TPS beneficiaries are strongly encouraged to apply as soon as possible following the start of the 90-day reregistration period. Applications from Salvadoran TPS beneficiaries will not be accepted prior to the opening of the reregistration period.

TPS beneficiaries must submit the Application for Temporary Protected Status Form I-821 without the application fee and the Application for Employment Authorization Form I-765 in order to reregister for TPS. All applicants seeking an extension of employment authorization through Sep. 9, 2010 must submit the required application filing fee with Form I-765. If the applicant is only seeking to reregister for TPS and not seeking an extension of employment authorization, he or she must submit Form I-765 for data-gathering purposes only, and is not required to submit the I-765 filing fee. The biometric service fee must be submitted by all reregistrants 14 years of age and older. Applicants may request a fee waiver for any of the application or biometric service fees in accordance with the regulations. Failure to submit the required filing fees or a properly documented fee waiver request will result in the rejection of the reregistration application.

Further details on this extension of TPS for El Salvador, including the application requirements and procedures, will appear in a Federal Register notice shortly. More information can also be obtained from the USCIS National Customer Service Center toll-free number: 1-800-375-5283. TPS forms are available from the toll-free USCIS Forms line, 1-800-870-3676, or from the USCIS Web site