A federal judge on Friday struck down a Trump administration policy enacted after the shooting of two National Guard members that made it harder for immigrants from dozens of countries to stay and enter the U.S. The 135-page ruling struck down four Trump administration policies, including a global asylum hold; a benefits hold on work permits, green cards, and naturalizations; a comprehensive review policy to look at already-decided cases; and the country-specific ban, which required officers to treat certain nationalities as riskier.
What changed
U.S. District Judge John McConnell, appointed by former Democratic President Barack Obama, ruled the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) directives adopted after the November 2025 National Guard shooting in Washington, D.C., were likely unlawful. The policies had halted asylum adjudications and placed indefinite holds on immigration benefit applications for people from dozens of designated countries.
The policies meant that immigrants from 39 African, Asian, Latin American, and Middle Eastern countries have been “categorically barred” from receiving final decisions on, among other things, their asylum, work permit, green card, and citizenship applications. In a ruling harshly criticizing the administration, U.S. District Chief Judge John McConnell Jr. said the policy “threw the lives of countless immigrants living in the United States into indeterminate legal limbo,” and he accused the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services of ignoring the law.
The judge found that “USCIS: claims statutory and regulatory authority that it does not possess; makes decisions without the reasoned explanations that it must provide; acts without regard for the reliance interests of applicants that it must consider; and justifies its actions with pretextual concerns of ‘national security’ that mask anti-immigrant sentiments.” “In legal terms that means USCIS’s actions are contrary to law and arbitrary and capricious.”
Why it matters
This ruling immediately restores USCIS’s duty to adjudicate pending cases. The judge has ordered USCIS to resume the processing of immigration applications filed by people from the 39 countries who were affected by Trump’s travel ban, as well as asylum applications. McConnell said USCIS needs to restart application processing for all immigrants impacted by the pause, and the agency can no longer rely on the blanket policies. The judge also said officers cannot treat all individuals from particular countries as having an increased national security risk.
The practical impact is significant. Delayed work permit renewals threatened livelihoods; families postponed education, travel, and homeownership because they did not know when their cases would be resolved; and future Americans had expected to become citizens only to see their applications stall without explanation. The ruling means that in addition to resuming processing immigration benefits, the administration will also need to schedule naturalization ceremonies for the thousands of immigrants on the cusp of becoming U.S. citizens.
The order is limited to USCIS, the Department of Homeland Security agency that handles immigration applications filed by people already inside the United States. Separate asylum cases decided by immigration judges for people stopped at the border are not covered by the decision. This distinction is critical: the ruling affects only affirmative USCIS asylum applications and other USCIS benefit applications, not defensive asylum proceedings before immigration judges.
Way forward
-
Check pending cases immediately. If you represent clients from the 39 designated countries with stalled USCIS applications (I-485, I-130, I-140, I-765, N-400, and affirmative I-589), begin monitoring USCIS systems for case activity. The agency may issue guidance on resumption timelines.
-
Prepare for naturalization ceremonies. If your clients are approved lawful permanent residents from affected countries awaiting N-400 decisions or oath ceremonies, alert them that judicial approval should trigger scheduling. Track USCIS field office announcements.
-
Document harm and delays. For clients who lost work authorization, faced visa overstay, or postponed major life decisions, maintain records of the administrative freeze period. These may support fee-shifting or estoppel arguments in future disputes.
-
Monitor for secondary review rescission. Judge McConnell also invalidated a USCIS policy that required immigrants from countries on the Trump administration’s travel ban list—who had already been approved for immigration benefits after entering the United States after 2021—to undergo a second review of their cases. The judge rejected the government’s argument that these additional screenings and country-based evaluations were necessary for national security. Ensure that USCIS does not attempt to resurrect “case reviews” under a different name.
Disclaimer
Fola is a software company, not a law firm. This article is not legal advice. Consult a licensed immigration attorney for advice on your specific situation. This ruling is subject to appeal, and agency policy can change without notice. Verify all information against the primary court opinion and USCIS guidance.