President Donald Trump has mandated the departure of thousands of Somali nationals from the United States.
The administration is terminating the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program for Somalia, compelling those under its protection to exit the U.S. This decision follows a high-profile fraud investigation in Minnesota that has captured nationwide attention.
Individuals affected by this change are required to leave by March 17.
According to sources from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shared with Fox News, approximately 2,500 Somalis are in the U.S. on TPS, with nearly 1,400 awaiting application outcomes.
About 24% of these individuals reside in Minnesota, a state where Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has intensified deportation activities recently.
Somalia remains one of the globe’s most impoverished and perilous nations, plagued by internal conflict, insurgency, and ongoing humanitarian challenges since the government fell in the early 1990s.
Following the collapse of the government in January 1991, Somalia was given TPS. Former President Joe Biden renewed that status in 2024.
The move from the Trump administration to wipe protections from Somalis in the US comes after at least 85 Somali individuals in Minnesota have been charged in fraud-related cases.
Trump has said that Somalis in Minnesota have been committing major fraud. His administration has now ended Temporary Protective Status (TPS) for Somalia, meaning thousands of Somalis need to leave the US by March 17
Men take part in a weekly Friday Jum’ah prayer session at Abubakar As-Saddique Islamic Centre amid a reported ongoing federal immigration operation targeting the Somali community in Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S., December 5, 2025
Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Somali-born US congresswoman representing parts of Minneapolis, has pushed back against Trump for his targeting Somalis
‘They stole $18 billion, that’s just what we’re learning about,’ Trump said of the Minnesota fraud.
Minnesota’s Somali community has been under scrutiny over the fraud scandal that has enveloped state leaders.
The outcry prompted Minnesota’s Democratic Governor Tim Walz to drop his reelection bid, which he did last week, before an ICE officer shot an unarmed woman, further propelling Minnesota into the news.
‘We’re getting rid of a lot of people that are criminals that shouldn’t be in our country,’ Trump said of his deportation efforts on Tuesday morning.
‘They came in through Biden’s open borders, and we’re getting them out of our country. That’s why our crime numbers are so good. We have record-low crime numbers.’
Somalians were viewed least favorably compared to other immigrant groups in the J.L. Partners poll.
In fact, they were the only group that polled in negative territory.
Thirty percent of registered voters said Somali immigrants made a bad impact on the United States.
US Border Patrol agents detain an unidentified man of Somali descent in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on January 8, 2026
That’s higher than the 24 percent who said they made a good impact and the 29 percent who viewed the community neutrally.
Haitians, Colombians, Venezuelans, Chinese, Africans, Filipinos, Mexicans, Indians, British and Europeans all polled more positively.
For years, President Donald Trump has slammed Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar, the highest-profile member of the community, mocking her at a rally-like event in Pennsylvania in December for wearing a ‘little turban.’
