The First Circuit has determined that an individual who departed the United States for 98 days under an in absentia removal order broke his continuous physical presence for the purpose of Temporary Protected Status. Although an Immigration Judge rescinded the removal order, the Board of Immigration Appeals later determined that the rescission was inappropriate. The First Circuit left open the possibility that a properly reopened removal order might negate the interruption to physical presence.
The full text of Machado Siagaran v. Barr: