In positive news, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (USCIS) policies indefinitely pausing final immigration benefits decisions for applicants from the 39 “Travel Ban” Countries have been held to violate the Administrative Procedures Act (APA) and they have been vacated.
The Challenged Policies
On June 5, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island issued an order in Dorcas International Institute of Rhode Island, et al. v. United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, et al., 26-cv-00132-JJM-PAS (D.RI.) vacating the following policy memorandums (PM) and policy alert (PA) implementing the Global Asylum Hold Policy, Benefits Hold Policy, Comprehensive Re-Review Policy, and Country-Specific Factors Policy:
- PA 2025-26, Impact of INA 212(f) on USCIS’ Adjudication of Discretionary Benefits (Nov. 27, 2025)
Instructed USCIS officials to consider any relevant country-specific factors, such as those specified in Presidential Proclamation No. 10949 (implementing new “travel ban” and restricting entry from nineteen countries), as significant negative factors in the adjudication of discretionary benefit requests. (“Country-Specific Factors Policy”) - PM 602-0192, Hold and Review of all Pending Asylum Applications and all USCIS Benefit Applications Filed by [Non-citizens] from High-Risk Countries (Dec. 2, 2025)
- Placed a hold on all applications for asylum & withholding of removal, regardless of the applicant’s country of nationality, pending a comprehensive review (“Global Asylum Hold Policy”);
- Placed a hold on pending benefit request made by individuals listed in Presidential Proclamation No. 10949 (nineteen countries) regardless of the person’s entry date, pending comprehensive review (“The Benefits Hold Policy”); and
- Directed conducting a comprehensive re-review of already approved benefit requests for individuals from countries listed in Presidential Proclamation No. 10949 who entered the United States on/after January 20, 2021 (“Comprehensive Re-Review Policy”).
- PM 602-0194, Hold and Review of USCIS Benefit Applications Filed by [Noncitizens] from Additional High-Risk Countries (January 1, 2026)
Designated additional countries included in the “Travel Ban” by Presidential Proclamation No. 10998 (expanding the “Travel Ban” to thirty nine countries) as “high-risk countries” and extending the prior month’s policy memorandum to those countries as well. (Extension of “Benefits Hold Policy”)
The District Court’s Rulings
The Court determined that USCIS did not have authority to take these actions, and these four policies were contrary to law. The Court also found these policies to be arbitrary and capricious -not reasonable or reasonably explained- because USCIS failed to provide a reasoned explanation for enacting the policies, failed to account for reliance interests in enacting the policies, and the agency provided a pretextual reason for enacting the policies. In agreeing that the reason provided by USCIS was a pretext and referencing statements by President Donald Trump and then Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Kristin Noem around the time these policies were implemented, the Court identified that the government was effectively asking them to ignore strong evidence of anti-immigrant animus before it, and the Court would not do so.
As relief, the Court vacated and set aside these policies (Global Asylum Policy, Benefits Hold Policy, Comprehensive Re-Review Policy, and Country-Specific Factors Policy) in their entirety and declared them unlawful.
After the District Court’s Ruling
After the order was issued, USCIS sought clarification from the District Court and requested final judgement so that they could file an appeal. On June 11, 2026, the District Court issued another order, clarifying that these policies were unlawful under the APA and the government had 24 hours to provide a status update on implementation. The Court noted:
“In any event, the outcome here is the same: USCIS’s Challenged Policies are no longer in effect. To be perfectly clear, this means that the Challenged Policies are vacated, “set aside,” “cancel[ed],” “annul[ed],” “revoke[d],” and “void[ed].”
On Friday, June 12, 2026, USCIS filed their appeal with the First Circuit Court of Appeals. Afterwards, they issued a news alert wherein they announced that while they disagree with the Court’s order, they will follow the order’s terms pending possible further judicial review. This means they will treat PM 602-0192, PM 602-0194, and PA 2025-26 as if they are not in effect.
What Does This Mean for My Case?
If you are a national of one of the thirty-nine “Travel Ban Countries” and your immigration benefit request has been impacted by one of the vacated USCIS policies, your case should resume processing.
Please note, however, that it may be impacted by further activity at the First Circuit Court of Appeals, should the First Circuit take their own action on the District Court’s ruling, such as setting it aside while the First Circuit reviews the case.
This blog post is intended for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Please consult with an immigration attorney regarding your specific situation.