On December 2, 2025, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) paused processing of several types of immigration applications, including asylum, green cards, and citizenship requests, for individuals from 19 countries previously restricted under the administration’s updated travel policies while USCIS conducts additional security reviews. The decision comes after an Afghan national, who had been granted humanitarian parole into the United States based on his work with CIA counterterrorism unit in Afghanistan after the fall of Kabul, and subsequently granted asylum in April 2025, under the Trump administration, was identified as the November 26th shooter in Washington, D.C., that killed one National Guard member and left another in critical condition.
Following the shooting and revelation by authorities that an immigrant was thought to be responsible for the attack on the National Guard members, President Donald Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem called for an intensified immigration crackdown. Mr. Trump vowed to “permanently pause migration from all third world countries...and remove anyone who is not a net asset to the United States.” His statement was followed up by USCIS Director Joseph Edlow announcing on X on November 28th that “USCIS has halted all asylum decisions until we can ensure that every alien is vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible.” Shortly thereafter, Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that the Department of State had “paused visa issuance for ALL individuals traveling on Afghan passports.” These announcements paved the way for the latest announcement by USCIS on the 2nd of December that affects nationals or citizens from Afghanistan, Myanmar (also known as Burma), Chad, Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela who are already inside the United States and in the process of adjusting their legal status.
USCIS’ decision to pause immigration applications for migrants from the nineteen banned nations listed above has already been felt. According to recent reports, citizens of the aforementioned countries have been subjected to canceled interviews and naturalization ceremonies, as well as abrupt removal of scheduled appointments from the system without explanation. While officials say the pause is part of a broader review intended to increase security screening for applicants from the designated countries. These measures are a defeat for applicants who have had to endure months background checks and years of living in immigration status limbo to arrive at the final stage of their case only to find it cancelled and the rules changed.
While federal authorities have not released the number of people affected by the ongoing measures, it is expected that the halt may worsen existing processing backlogs and create uncertainty for applicants who were nearing the end of their immigration process. The duration of the pause remains unclear at this time.