US Judge Strikes Down Trump Immigration Policies Targeting People From 39 Countries
- A federal judge in Rhode Island ruled against USCIS policies that blocked immigration applications from people in 39 countries
- The ruling came after immigrant service organisations and labour unions filed a lawsuit in March challenging the processing freeze
- Countries under full travel bans include Afghanistan, Iran, Haiti, Somalia, Venezuela and Syria, with the policies tied to a 2025 shooting
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A United States federal judge has ruled that the Trump administration unlawfully blocked people from 39 countries from receiving decisions on their applications for asylum, work permits, green cards and citizenship.
Chief U.S. District Judge John McConnell, sitting in Providence, Rhode Island, struck down a set of policies adopted by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which he said left people from dozens of African, Asian, Latin American and Middle Eastern countries in "indeterminate legal limbo."
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The ruling was delivered on Friday, June 5, 2026, Reuters reports.
McConnell, who was appointed by former President Barack Obama, found that USCIS had adopted the policies without proper statutory and regulatory authority and on the basis of "anti-immigrant sentiments that it is forbidden from letting influence its decision-making."
"USCIS's hold on adjudications cannot be attributed to anything that these individuals did wrong; rather, it arises solely by the happenstance of their birth," the judge wrote.
What Led to the USCIS Policies
The processing freeze was introduced as part of a broader immigration crackdown following the November 2025 shooting of two National Guard members in Washington, D.C. Prosecutors say the attack was carried out by an Afghan immigrant, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, who has pleaded not guilty.
After the incident, President Donald Trump pledged on social media to "permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the U.S. system to fully recover."
His administration subsequently expanded travel bans to cover 39 nations. Countries under full bans include Afghanistan, Iran, Haiti, Somalia, Venezuela and Syria, with the administration citing vetting and security concerns as justification.
USCIS then suspended the processing of immigration benefit applications from people originating in all 39 affected countries.
Court Finds USCIS Violated Immigration Law
The ruling marked a significant win for a coalition of immigrant service organisations and labour unions that filed a legal challenge in March 2026.
Skye Perryman, head of the legal group Democracy Forward, which represented the plaintiffs, said:
"This ruling reaffirms a basic principle: the federal government cannot shut down lawful immigration pathways or discriminate against people based on where they come from."
McConnell was direct in his assessment of the agency's conduct, writing:
"The rule of law has to apply to everyone equally and, as evident here, USCIS has neither 'followed the law' nor 'done things the right way.'"
He added that the agency had violated the very immigration laws that Congress charged it with administering, as well as the administrative laws governing its own actions.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which oversees USCIS, did not immediately respond to requests for comment following the ruling.
US court blocks Trump’s $100,000 H-1B visa fee
In a similar development, a United States federal court had overturned a policy introduced by President Donald Trump that imposed a $100,000 application fee on H-1B visa petitions in a significant boost to foreign professionals seeking employment opportunities in America, including many Nigerians.
The ruling was handed down on Monday, June 8, by US District Judge Leo Sorokin, who found that the former president lacked the legal authority to introduce such a requirement without approval from Congress.
Source: Legit.ng
