U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)

A new Trump policy has created a backlog forcing thousands of green card applicants to remain abroad in a prolonged and difficult situation. The policy has been criticized for causing severe hardship and delays in family reunifications.

The Trump administration announced that green card applicants must leave the U.S. to apply, a policy change affecting immigrants. The rule, detailed in a USCIS memo, has sparked debate over its impact on immigration processes.

The Trump administration's USCIS announced a major policy shift requiring green card applicants currently in the U.S. to leave the country and apply through consular processing from their home countries, with only extraordinary circumstances eligible for adjustment of status. The policy applies to noncitizens on temporary visas such as student, tourist, or work visas, regardless of family ties to U.S. citizens. Critics argue the policy will cause humanitarian concerns and processing delays for those with U.S. citizen spouses and children.

The Trump administration's USCIS announced a major policy shift requiring green card applicants already in the U.S. to leave the country and apply through consular processing from their home countries, with only extraordinary circumstances exempted. The policy affects noncitizens on temporary visas including students, tourists, and temporary workers, and the administration argues it reflects the original intent of immigration law, though critics raise concerns about humanitarian impacts and separation of families with U.S. citizen members.

The Trump administration is temporarily transferring immigration lawyers from USCIS to the Justice Department to accelerate denaturalization cases against naturalized American citizens. The effort aims to identify fraud in the legal immigration system, with DOJ officials having shortlisted 385 people for denaturalization charges. Despite high legal burdens of proof required for these cases, the administration has prioritized denaturalization as a key policy goal.

President Trump's administration is putting Dreamers at risk of deportation despite his past sympathetic comments, with slower renewals and narrowed protections. The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program is facing challenges, including a court ruling that it is illegal. This affects over 500,000 recipients

A Department of Homeland Security official, Lauren Bullis, was killed by a naturalized U.S. citizen with a criminal record, exposing vulnerabilities in federal vetting processes. The suspect, Olaolukitan Adon Abel, was naturalized in 2022 despite prior convictions, prompting criticism of the Biden administration's immigration policies and calls for improved screening.