Federal Judge Declares 75-Country Green Card Freeze Unlawful for Individual Plaintiff
A federal judge has ruled against the Trump administration's policy that paused immigrant visa approvals for nationals from 75 countries, deeming it unlawful. The policy, introduced by the State Department in January 2026, aimed to halt visa applications while developing additional screening procedures to assess applicants' potential dependency on public benefits. This freeze primarily affected family-based, employment-based, and investment-based visa applicants. In the case of De Moura Gomes v. Rubio, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta found that the policy exceeded the Secretary of State's authority under the Immigration and Nationality Act, which assigns consular officers the responsibility to evaluate visa applications individually.