temporary protected status

Biden will send Congress a proposal that would protect millions of people from deportation, marking a dramatic turn from President Trump's hardline immigration tack.

The government's action grants thousands of Syrians in the U.S. an 18-month extension of a program allowing them to remain here. The State Department has said no part of Syria is safe from violence.

The delay will give Congress time to work on a possible permanent pathway for thousands of Liberians to remain in the U.S.

The administration's effort to eliminate protections for more than 300,000 immigrants from four impoverished countries is halted for now.

In 2012, Syrians living in the U.S. were shielded from having to return to a country embroiled in war. Those protections were extended Wednesday, but only for Syrians in the U.S. since Aug. 1, 2016.