The federal government has announced that it is extending Temporary Protected Status for people from four countries until January 2020, which helps keep it in-line with a court order.

Under President Donald Trump, federal officials announced plans to end Temporary Protected Status for people from a handful of countries.

The decisions led to a lawsuit, and a federal judge blocked the government from ending the program for people from El Salvador, Nicaragua, Haiti and Sudan.

Cecilia Menjivar, a sociology professor at UCLA, studies Temporary Protected Status. She said the roughly 10-month extension leaves bigger questions unanswered.   

“What about the other groups who are not included in this extension?” Menjivar said. “And, even more importantly, what about the long-term?”

Temporary Protected Status generally lasts for 12 to 18-month periods. Near the end, the government decides whether to extend the program, or ask people to leave the United States.