The advocacy groups are asking a judge to pause enforcing the new rules, pending their lawsuit. The judge took the matter under advisement, court records show.
Outside the courthouse in South Boston, advocates and affected TPS holders said these workers are essential to the state’s economy.
“This case is about something much bigger than paperwork,” said Ciro Valiente, a member of the board of directors for the Venezuelan Association in Massachusetts. “It’s about a nurse or a doctor caring for patients in our hospitals. A construction worker helping build our communities. A teacher supporting our children, a parent wondering how to pay next month’s rent.”
Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, shields immigrants from certain countries experiencing war, environmental disasters, or other dangerous conditions, from deportation.
The Supreme Court ruled last month that the Department of Homeland Security may end TPS protections for Haiti and Syria, a decision that could extend to other countries.
TPS status does not automatically grant a person the right to work. They must also obtain a work permit.
There are close to 37,000 TPS holders in Massachusetts, according to a recent estimate by the University of Massachusetts Boston. Almost a quarter are made up of migrants from El Salvador, Sudan, and Ukraine.
Some TPS holders received notice their work authorization would expire July 22, according to lawyers for Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project, another plaintiff in the lawsuit.
Moises Ruiz, a TPS holder from El Salvador who has been in the United States for more than two decades, told the crowd of roughly three dozen that he lives in “constant fear” of being separated from his 14-year-old daughter and 8-year-old son. He said disruptions and delays to obtaining a work permit have “put our livelihoods at risk.”
“My employer told me that if I could not present a new employment authorization document, I would no longer be able to work,” Ruiz said through a translator. “Imagine the fear of not knowing whether I will be able to continue providing for my family because of delays that are completely beyond my control.”
Valiente said many Venezuelan community members have also been concerned about the new asylum fee, which advocates said has been charged retroactively and without sufficient notice. Under the new policy, individuals who don’t pay the fee within 30 days of being notified could face rejected applications, canceled work permits, or deportation.
“They are logging in through [an immigration] portal five, six, or seven times during the day [to check if they have the fee], and that’s exhausting,” Valiente said.
In court filings, the government said it is too late for the judge to grant the plaintiffs’ request for an emergency stay because the asylum fees were announced in July last year.
“Plaintiffs had more than four months to seek relief with this Court. Yet, Plaintiffs did not file suit until three months later — and did not seek emergency relief until one week before some of their members’ employment authorization were set to expire,” prosecutors wrote.
In a statement to the Globe, James Percival, general counsel for the Department of Homeland Security, criticized the federal judiciary for taking such cases.
“What’s going on with some of these District Judges is absolutely ABSURD… what these judges are doing is engaging in naked politics and then they’re shrouding it in the thin veneer of legalese.”
Some TPS holders have been in the United States for decades and have established families. Jose Urias, who is from El Salvador, came to the United States in 1995 and has a construction business here, but TPS authorization for his country is due to expire in September.
“It’s scary and not scary at the same time because that gives you the power to stand up and defend yourself, our families, and other families,” Urias, who spoke at the pre-hearing gathering, told the Globe. ”We build businesses, we create work for US citizens, and we pay local and federal taxes.”
This story has been updated.
Emily Spatz can be reached at emily.spatz@globe.com. Follow her on X @emilymspatz.
