Effective immediately, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is suspending a wide range of pending immigration applications, re-reviewing certain approved applications, and suspending the processing of all applications for asylum and withholding of removal for any applicant, according to an agency policy memorandum released today. The memorandum directs USCIS personnel to:
- Pause processing of pending immigration benefit requests for foreign nationals who were born in or are a citizen of one of the 19 countries listed in President Trump’s June 2025 travel ban ;
- Conduct a comprehensive re-review of approved immigration benefits for foreign nationals from one of the 19 travel ban countries who entered the United States on or after January 20, 2021; and
- Pause processing of all Forms I-589 applications for asylum and withholding of removal, regardless of the foreign national’s place of birth or nationality.
USCIS’s actions are primarily in response to the shootings of two National Guard members last week in Washington, DC. In the ensuing days, President Trump and several immigration agencies announced various restrictive immigration actions the government planned to undertake, including USCIS benefit processing holds and the re-review of already-approved immigration benefits, such as green cards. Foreign nationals who are affected by the new USCIS directives must be prepared for additional vetting, requests for evidence related to their eligibility for the relevant immigration benefit or for security-related matters, and requests to appear for an interview or re-interview.