WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The US Department of Homeland Security has decided to provide a six-month extension to Haitian refugees, who were granted temporary protection after an earthquake in the country in 2010, DHS Secretary John Kelly said in a press release on Monday.
"After careful review of the current conditions in Haiti and conversations with the Haitian government, I have decided to extend the designation of Haiti for Temporary Protected Status (TPS)for a limited period of six-months," Kelly stated in the release.
The extension is effective July 23, 2017 through January 22, 2018, the release added.
Kelly noted that before the expiration of this program, the United States would re-assess the designation for Haiti and determine whether displaced persons from the country would be granted temporary permission to stay in the US.
The administration of President Donald Trump plans to working with the Haitian government and helping the country in providing travel documentation for its nationals, Kelly stressed.
As the recovery from the devastating 2010 earthquake continues, nearly 98 percent of camps for displaced persons in Haiti have closed, according to DHS.
