A federal judge in Boston on Tuesday temporarily halted the implementation of a policy that would have stripped work authorization from tens of thousands of asylum applicants and immigrants holding Temporary Protected Status (TPS).
U.S. District Judge Nathaniel Gorton issued the short-term order after immigrant advocacy organizations and labor unions sued U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to prevent the agency from putting into effect new immigration restrictions enacted by Congress last year. The plaintiffs asked the court to block the agency from enforcing the changes while litigation proceeds.
The temporary injunction will remain effective until Judge Gorton reaches a decision on whether to impose a longer-term block. The judge said he will rule on that more permanent injunction by August 5. USCIS has not issued a comment on the court's order.
Key elements of the legislation at issue were included in a tax and spending law signed in July 2025. That statute introduced application fees for asylum petitions for the first time and curtailed the ability of individuals with Temporary Protected Status to obtain work authorization.
Temporary Protected Status is a humanitarian designation that permits nationals of countries experiencing armed conflict, natural disasters, or other extraordinary conditions to remain and work in the United States when returning home would be unsafe. The administration has moved to terminate TPS designations for people from more than a dozen countries as part of broader immigration policy changes.
In June, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the administration to terminate TPS for thousands of Haitian and Syrian nationals. The recent district court action in Boston challenges the latest set of administrative changes tied to the July 2025 law.
The litigation was brought by immigrant rights groups and labor unions that argued the agency's new rules would unlawfully remove employment authorization from affected individuals. The temporary order restores the status quo for those with asylum claims and TPS while the court considers whether the restrictions should be blocked on a longer-term basis.
The case leaves key questions unresolved until Judge Gorton's forthcoming decision. For now, tens of thousands of people who might otherwise have lost work permits remain authorized to work pending the outcome of the challenge.