Dahlia Doe v. Noem: Challenging the government’s termination of TPS for Syrians
On September 21, 2025, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem published a notice of the termination of Syria’s Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation and related benefits. The notice terminated TPS for more than 6000 Syrians effective November 21, 2025, only 60 days later. TPS protects certain individuals from removal to countries designated unsafe on account of dire country conditions like armed conflict, natural disaster, or other extraordinary circumstances, and Syria has had this designation since March 2012.
On October 21, 2025 International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP), Muslim Advocates, and Van Der Hout LLP filed a class action lawsuit representing a group of individual plaintiffs, suing on behalf of themselves and similarly situated Syrian TPS recipients, seeking to have the termination declared illegal, and to restore vital benefits.
The Litigation Team
International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP), Muslim Advocates and Van Der Hout LLP are co-counsel in this case.
The Plaintiffs
The plaintiffs include seven Syrian citizens with TPS who are directly impacted by the termination. Individual plaintiffs sought safety from Syria’s brutal civil war and have planted roots in the United States, with extensive family, professional, and educational networks. Many of the plaintiffs have been able to live safely in the United States for years only because of their TPS status; if they lose their current or pending TPS status on November 21, they will not have the time or opportunity to apply for asylum and other lawful statuses. In addition to immediately losing work authorization and the ability to support themselves and their families, they risking deportation to a country still experiencing intense armed conflict as well as dire humanitarian conditions.
The Impact
This lawsuit challenges the Trump Administration’s abrupt and unlawful termination of TPS for Syrian nationals. Over 6,100 Syrian nationals currently have TPS and, as a result, find refuge in the United States; and over 800 Syrian nationals have pending applications hoping for that same protection.
Case Status
November 19, 2025: Federal Court orders Trump Administration to delay the termination for TPS for Syria.
November 17, 2025: Counsel for Plaintiff’s and the government defendants represented by attorneys from the U.S. Department of Justice appeared in front of Judge Failla in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York for an in-person, public hearing for oral argument on the plaintiffs' emergency request for immediate postponement of the November 21 termination of TPS for Syria.
November 6, 2025: Counsel for Plaintiff’s filed a reply to the Defendant’s opposition to the Motion for Postponement of Agency Action.
October 31, 2025: Defendants filed their opposition to the Motion for Postponement of Agency Action.
October 21, 2025: Case is filed in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (“Court” or “District Court”), as well as a Motion for Postponement of Agency Action.
Case Timeline
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Federal Court orders Trump Administration to delay the termination for TPS for Syria.
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Counsel for Plaintiff’s and the government defendants represented by attorneys from the U.S. Department of Justice appeared in front of Judge Failla in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York for an in-person, public hearing for oral argument on the plaintiffs' emergency request for immediate postponement of the November 21 termination of TPS for Syria.
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Counsel for Plaintiff’s filed a reply to the Defendant’s opposition to the Motion for Postponement of Agency Action.
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Defendants filed their opposition to the Motion for Postponement of Agency Action.
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Case is filed in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (“Court” or “District Court”), as well as a Motion for Postponement of Agency Action.
