Attorney General Bonta Issues Guidance on Workplace Protections for Employees with Temporary Protected Status

Guidance reminds California employers of legal obligations amid changes to federal Temporary Protected Status designations

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today issued guidance to California employers and workers outlining legal obligations and workplace protections for employees with Temporary Protected Status (TPS). The guidance follows a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision allowing the federal government to proceed with terminating TPS protections for Haitians and Syrians, as legal proceedings involving TPS designations for other countries continue. The guidance reminds employers that changes to a country’s TPS designation do not alter their obligations under federal and California employment laws and provides information to help workers understand their workplace rights.

“Changes to Temporary Protected Status can create uncertainty for workers and employers alike, but uncertainty does not erase workers’ rights,” said Attorney General Bonta. “California employers must continue to follow the law when verifying employment authorization and must not discriminate or retaliate against workers based on their national origin or immigration status. My office is issuing this guidance so that employers understand their responsibilities and workers know the protections available to them.”

TPS is a federal humanitarian immigration program that allows eligible noncitizens from designated countries to temporarily live and work in the United States when conditions in their home countries make returning unsafe. In June 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court reversed lower court orders that had blocked the termination of TPS designations for Syria and Haiti, allowing the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to proceed with ending those protections. Legal proceedings involving TPS terminations for other countries remain ongoing, creating a changing landscape for TPS beneficiaries and their employers.

The guidance reminds California employers that they must continue to comply with federal employment verification requirements and federal and state laws protecting workers from discrimination and retaliation. Among other things, the guidance reminds employers to: 

• Follow current employment verification requirements. Employers must complete Form I-9 to verify an employee’s identity and authorization to work in the United States and should monitor USCIS and E-Verify for current TPS termination and work authorization expiration dates.
• Understand that, in certain circumstances, a worker’s employment authorization may remain valid beyond the expiration date printed on their work permit. TPS-based Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) may be automatically extended through a federal notice, USCIS notice, court order, or under certain DHS regulations.
• Allow workers to choose which acceptable documents they present. Employers must not demand more or different documents than required for Form I-9 verification, require a specific Form I-9 document, or reject documents that reasonably appear genuine based on a worker’s citizenship status or national origin.
• Follow the proper process when reverifying employment authorization. An employee affected by the end of a TPS designation may still be authorized to work under another status or provision of law, or may obtain work authorization through another basis, including through a pending adjustment of status application. Employers must not reverify employees whose EADs remain valid and, when reverification is required, must give employees an opportunity to present acceptable documentation establishing continued employment authorization.
• Follow workplace anti-discrimination and anti-retaliation laws. Employers must comply with applicable federal and California protections and must not use immigration-related practices to unlawfully discriminate or retaliate against workers. 

TPS beneficiaries with valid employment authorization have workplace rights and protections, including the right to seek employment without unlawful discrimination and to choose which acceptable documents to present during the Form I-9 verification process. California workplace protections, rights and remedies are available regardless of immigration status.

Attorney General Bonta is committed to protecting the rights of California’s immigrant communities as changes to federal immigration policy continue to create uncertainty for workers and families. Earlier this year, Attorney General Bonta co-led an amicus brief in the U.S. Supreme Court opposing the termination of TPS for Haitians and Syrians, and most recently called on Congress to extend TPS protections for Haitians. He has repeatedly supported challenges to the termination of TPS for Haitians and Venezuelans and defended pathways for legal immigration for those fleeing dangerous conditions in their home countries. And he has temporarily blocked the Trump Administration’s efforts to impose cruel new restrictions on access to public benefit programs based on immigration status while litigation continues.