The Daily Fuckup

A federal judge in Massachusetts on April 8, 2026, postponed the effective date of the government’s termination of Temporary Protected Status for Ethiopians. U.S. District Judge Brian E. Murphy granted the plaintiffs’ request to delay the end date, which had been set for February 13, 2026. ([docs.justia.com](https://docs.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/massachusetts/madce/1%3A2026cv10278/294783/56))

The order does not settle the lawsuit. It keeps the termination from taking effect while the challenge continues, so affected Ethiopians remain covered by TPS protections and work authorization for now. Murphy wrote that the government ended Ethiopia’s TPS designation “without regard for the process delineated by Congress.” ([docs.justia.com](https://docs.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/massachusetts/madce/1%3A2026cv10278/294783/56))

Ethiopia was first designated for TPS in 2022 and later extended through December 12, 2025. The Department of Homeland Security then announced the termination in December 2025, setting the end date for February 13, 2026. Murphy’s ruling pauses that clock, not the underlying litigation over whether DHS followed the statute Congress wrote for ending TPS designations. ([docs.justia.com](https://docs.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/massachusetts/madce/1%3A2026cv10278/294783/56))

The court fight sits inside a wider wave of TPS litigation. DHS has tried to wind down protections for several countries, and those efforts have repeatedly landed in federal court. In this case, the immediate effect is simple: the government’s cutoff is on hold, and Ethiopia TPS stays alive while the judge weighs the challenge. ([docs.justia.com](https://docs.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/massachusetts/madce/1%3A2026cv10278/294783/56))