On October 26, 2016, USCIS announced an extension of designation of Nepal for Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, in the United States for an additional 18 month period, effective from December 25, 2016, through June 24, 2018. According to USCIS, the extension permits Nepalese citizens to extend TPS status and employment authorization for this additional period based on the continuing environmental disaster caused by conditions arsing out of the devastating earthquake which hit Nepal in April, 2015.
Nepalese citizens seeking to register for this extension of TPS must do so within the 60 day window between October 26, 2016 and December 27, 2016. Nepalese TPS applicants will receive a new Employment Authorization Document (“EAD”) with a June 24, 2018 expiration date. USCIS acknowledges that some applicants will not receive their new EAD before their current EAD will expire on December 24, 2016, and for that reason, the announcement of the TPS extension designation also automatically extends existing EADs through June 24, 2017. Employers are cautioned to comply with USCIS instructions in re-verifying automatically extended EADs.
