The Trump administration declined this week to terminate Temporary Protected Status for Salvadorans, allowing roughly 170,000 people to continue living and working legally in the United States while the Department of Homeland Security considers what to do next. DHS said it will announce its decision “at the appropriate time,” offering no timeline or assurance that the protections will be extended. The decision leaves Salvadoran TPS holders in legal limbo, particularly as the administration has moved to end protections for people from countries including Haiti and Syria. TPS was created by Congress in 1990 for immigrants who cannot safely return to their home countries because of armed conflict, natural disasters or other extraordinary conditions. Salvadorans became eligible in 2001 after a series of devastating earthquakes in El Salvador. The program provides temporary permission to live and work in the United States, but it does not create a path to permanent residency or citizenship. That limitation has left many recipients vulnerable despite decades of work, family life and community ties in the country. Daysi Gonzalez, who arrived in the United States from El Salvador with her family when she was 6, said the uncertainty has forced her to consider how she would dismantle the life she has built. Gonzalez, now 31, works at a political consulting firm where she began as an intern and co-owns a home with her sister. “I’ve tried to adjust status in different ways, but there are very limited legal options to adjust your status and there is no pathway to citizenship for TPS,” Gonzalez said. In an Instagram post, she described feeling emotionally and physically depleted after weeks of uncertainty: “I feel numb … it’s so frustrating that it feels like we suffered that all for nothing.” Advocates are pressing Congress for a permanent legislative solution. Jose Palma, a TPS recipient and national coordinator of the National TPS Alliance, said legislation that would create a pathway to permanent residency may be one Republican vote short of reaching the House floor. The National Salvadoran American Association is also urging lawmakers to approve a shorter-term extension of 18 months. Chairman Francisco Semiao said additional time would help families sell homes or businesses and make other arrangements if the government ultimately ends the program. More than 150,000 Salvadoran TPS holders contribute an estimated $5.4 billion to the U.S. economy each year and pay about $1.5 billion in federal and state taxes, according to immigrant advocacy group FWD.us. Over the program’s 25-year history, TPS holders have also had approximately 150,000 children who are U.S. citizens. The Supreme Court ruled in June that the president has broad authority to end TPS protections, increasing pressure on Congress to establish a more durable status for people who have lived in the United States for much of their lives. For now, Salvadoran recipients retain legal status—but without knowing how long it will last.