Plaintiff Prevail Against USCIS’s Hold of Applications by Applicants from “High-Risk Countries”

This is a new update to our previous Update: Hold and Review of USCIS Benefit Applications Filed by Applicants from “High-Risk Countries”.

A federal court in Massachusetts lifted the federal government’s hold on immigration applications filed by approximately 200 plaintiffs based on their nationality. The affected nationalities include Afghanistan, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burma (Myanmar), Burundi, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville (Republic of the Congo), Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Dominica, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Gabon, The Gambia, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Palestinian Authority (those using P.A.-issued documents), Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, Yemen, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

In ruling against the federal government, the court deemed that:

• USCIS likely does not have the authority to freeze applications indefinitely based on nationality;
• Using nationality as a negative factor is likely inconsistent with immigration law;
• The government did not follow proper rulemaking procedures before implementing these policies; and
• Applicants suffered real and immediate harm, including:
• Loss of work authorization
• Disruption of lawful status
• Financial and personal hardship

The decision benefits only the applicants who were part of the lawsuit, and other applicants impacted by the blanket hold will need to take legal action to obtain relief for their cases.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact your ILG attorney or reach our firm at .