Over 250,000 Venezuelans in U.S., including thousands in South Florida, to lose Temporary Protected Status

Question

250,000+ Venezuelans lost their TPS recently. Biden extended TPS for Venezuelans by 18 months, until it was reversed by the new admin. Is it true there are now nearly 300,000 (maybe more?) Venezuelans who are now technically undocumented immigrants. And if so, will this worsen the backlog of asylum applications?

Answer 1

Yes, around 250,000 Venezuelans have lost their TPS as of November 7th, 2025. TPS for Venezuelans was started in 2021 under President Joe Biden, and was set to extended through October of 2026 until the new DHS Secretary Noem reversed the decision. According to the American Immigration Council, however, not all immigrants will automatically become undocumented. 

"TPS beneficiaries return to the immigration status that the person held prior to receiving TPS, unless that status has expired or the person has successfully acquired a new immigration status"

It is likely that the backlog of asylum applications will worsen, but countries like Ecuador have been entered into an agreement with the US to allow more asylum seekers in their countries according to AS/COA.

https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/fact-sheet/temporary-protected-status-tps-overview/#:~:text=TPS%20beneficiaries%20return%20to%20the,and%20become%20subject%20to%20removal.

https://www.as-coa.org/articles/tracking-trump-and-latin-america-migration-ecuador-enters-safe-third-country-agreement