DACA and TPS Update November 2026: Venezuela Ruling and Renewals

November 2, 2026 · By Ahmad Yakzan

If you have DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) or TPS (Temporary Protected Status), here is a plain-English summary of where things stand in early November 2026.

DACA: Renewals Continue, but Slowly

DACA protects certain people who came to the U.S. as children from deportation. It also lets them apply for work permits, two years at a time. DACA is not a lawful immigration status.

• Renewals only. People who have DACA now can renew it. Because of court cases, USCIS has mostly not processed first-time applications since 2017.
• Longer waits. A Niskanen Center review of USCIS data, updated this week, found that the median DACA renewal took 3.7 months as of August 30, 2026. At the end of fiscal year 2025, it took about half a month.
• Fewer recipients. The same data shows that the number of active DACA recipients fell by more than 18,000 between the second and third quarters of fiscal year 2026.

USCIS generally recommends filing your renewal 150 to 120 days before your current DACA expires. With today's delays, filing early in that window can lower the risk of a gap in your work permit. Learn more on our DACA page.

TPS: Court Decisions Are Moving Quickly

TPS is temporary protection for people from countries the government has designated because of war, natural disaster or other serious conditions. While a country's designation is in effect, people with TPS are protected from removal and can get work permits.

Venezuela

At the end of October, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously refused to keep the suspension of Venezuelan TPS in place. According to the National TPS Alliance, TPS for Venezuela will be restored on November 6 unless the Supreme Court steps in. That would cover two groups: people with TPS under the 2023 designation, and people with TPS under the 2021 designation who applied under the January 17, 2025 extension. This could change quickly.

Haiti and Other Terminated Designations

An October 21 practice alert from the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) says a recent Supreme Court ruling allows DHS to move forward with ending TPS for several countries. The alert lists Haiti, Burma, Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria and Yemen among the countries whose TPS was ended and whose pending court cases are affected by that ruling.

Ukraine, Sudan and Lebanon

• Ukraine and Sudan: These designations were set to run through October 19, 2026, but DHS did not announce a decision by then. USCIS says people from these countries keep TPS, including their work permits, until it makes a further announcement.
• Lebanon: Automatically extended until November 27, 2026.

What This Means in Florida

Florida has large Venezuelan and Haitian communities, including many families in the Tampa Bay area. Florida law also requires private employers with 25 or more employees to use E-Verify. That makes it especially important to keep your work permit and any USCIS extension notices current and easy to find.

Practical Steps

• Check your work permit's expiration date today.
• Rely on official USCIS pages, not social media.
• If you have any arrests, convictions or a prior removal order, talk with an attorney before filing.
• If you receive a Notice to Appear (the document that starts a case in immigration court), read about deportation defense.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Every case is different, and you should talk with an attorney about your own situation.

If you or a loved one has DACA or TPS and has questions about a renewal or a recent court ruling, schedule a consultation with Ahmad Yakzan at American Dream Law Office PLLC. Call (656) 236-0205 or schedule online.