On August 20, the United States deported over 160 individuals to Haiti, marking the first deportation flight since the termination of temporary protected status (TPS) for approximately 350,000 Haitians. This flight included some former TPS holders and landed in Cap-Haïtien instead of Port-au-Prince. Continued insecurity has rendered the capital’s airport too hazardous for U.S. commercial flights.
TPS permits eligible foreign nationals already in the U.S. to remain and work legally when conditions in their home countries are unsafe for return. Haiti’s devastating 2010 earthquake killed over 220,000 people and displaced 1.5 million, making it a candidate for TPS. For 15 years, administrations have renewed or redesignated Haiti for temporary protection. However, in June, a Supreme Court decision led to Haitians losing this protection after protracted legal battles.
There’s debate over the 15-year TPS duration. Advocates and critics use this period to support their positions but overlook a critical issue: what should be done when a disaster becomes chronic?
“Migration often starts well before disaster strikes,” shared Alex-Handrah Aimé, whose parents immigrated from Haiti to the United States in the 1980s. Her experience as VP of Network Investments at Meta, focusing on infrastructure, underscores the need for resilience and adaptation.
Between 2008 and 2023, Haiti experienced approximately 2.9 million internal displacements due to 44 natural disasters, affecting a population of roughly 10 million. Political instability and underinvestment, particularly in rural areas, have compounded Haiti’s challenges. By the mid-2010s, 80% of urban households mainly relied on charcoal, exacerbating the demand for wood and accelerating migration to cities lacking jobs and infrastructure.
This pattern is prevalent worldwide as environmental stressors meet with vulnerable systems. Instead of continually renewing TPS or ending it based on recent assessments, Congress should develop a process for evaluating persistent national crises.
Aimé proposes a two-step national stability review, conducted by Homeland Security and the State Department, that triggers after a country has held TPS for 10 years. This review would address whether the crisis has become chronic, considering factors like environmental impacts, the feasibility of safe return, and institutional capacity to support returnees.
Determining chronic conditions would lead to evaluating those with TPS for 10 years for possible permanent residency. Only individuals with strong economic, community, or family ties in the U.S. would be eligible, subject to screening.
This proposed review aims to match relief efforts with the nature of the crisis, limiting eligibility to those most integrated into U.S. society. Congress has previously offered permanent relief to specific populations and contemplated broader legislation. Yet, these are often confined to specific nationalities and dates, promising guaranteed status.
A national stability review suggests TPS might not always be the right legal framework given ongoing crises. Permanent residency cannot be granted universally to all facing environmental stress or poor governance. The review would not open migration or automatically change status but would prevent abrupt TPS terminations without consideration of underlying conditions.
The practice of renewing TPS for 15 years indicates political stagnation. As conditions evolve, disasters may cease, but structural issues persist. The inability to safely land planes in a country’s capital points to system-wide failures. Congress should acknowledge the distinction between emergencies and systemic weakness, building a more thorough humanitarian path when acute issues turn chronic.
Alex-Handrah Aimé, born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, is a PD Soros Fellow and a 2026 Public Voices Fellow with the OpEd Project. Her focus at Meta on infrastructure reflects her advocacy for improved disaster response strategies.
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