Syria Designated for Temporary Protected Status, DHS Announces

The Department of Homeland Security has designated Syria for temporary protected status (TPS) for a period of 18 months, effective March 29, 2012, through September 30, 2013. The registration period also runs from March 29, 2012, through September 30, 2013. The designation allows eligible Syrian nationals (and those having no nationality who last habitually resided in Syria) who have both continuously resided in and been continuously physically present in the United States since March 29, 2012, to be granted TPS.

The notice explains that TPS was designated for Syria because of “extraordinary and temporary conditions” in that country that prevent Syrian nationals from returning in safety. Among other things, the notice states that President Bashar al-Assad “used the military to suppress the [citizen protest] movement, and the Syrian Arab Republic Government launched a brutal crackdown, violently repressing and killing thousands of its own civilians.” The notice states that this activity continues, including “arbitrary executions, killing and persecution of protestors and members of the media, arbitrary detention, disappearances, torture, and ill-treatment.” There are also reports of attacks on and arrests of medical doctors treating wounded members of the opposition.

See also:

• The Federal Register notice, which was published on March 29, 2012, and also describes the other eligibility criteria applicants must meet (PDF)
• A related U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services press release