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April 2, 2026 Guides & Reports
On December 2, 2025, the Trump administration placed a hold on all asylum applications filed with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and is pausing applications for permanent residence (green card) and other immigration applications filed by individuals from 19 ‘Travel Ban’ countries.
Update: On March 30, 2026, USCIS announced that it would lift its pause on processing applications from “thoroughly screened asylum seekers from non high-risk countries.” USCIS has not made clear which countries are considered “high-risk” and has not yet provided any written guidance on this policy change.
On December 16, 2025, the Trump administration expanded the ‘Travel Ban’ to include an additional 20 countries. And on January 1, 2026, the administration expanded the pause on immigration applications to include individuals from all 39 countries listed in the ‘Expanded Travel and Immigration Ban.’
This resource page provides general information explaining the new USCIS policy. This information is not legal advice. If you have questions specific to your case, you should contact an immigration attorney. Additionally, this is an evolving area of law. The information below can change if the Trump administration issues new policies. Please revisit this page regularly for the most up-to-date information regarding USCIS policies regarding asylum application and benefit requests for immigrants from ‘Travel Ban’ countries.
On December 2, 2025 and January 1, 2026, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued policy memos that:
place an indefinite hold on all “benefits requests” made by immigrants from countries named in the Expanded Travel and Immigration Ban; and
require USCIS to re-review benefits requests that were already approved for immigrants from countries named in the Expanded Travel and Immigration Ban, if the immigrants entered the U.S. on or after January 20, 2021; and
require USCIS to review of all policies, procedures, and screening and vetting processes for benefit requests for individuals from countries named in the Expanded Travel and Immigration Ban.
December “Expanded Travel and Immigration Ban” (effective January 1, 2026)
For more information about the travel and immigration restrictions on these countries, read our resource page.
On March 30, 2026, USCIS announced it is now lifting the hold on processing applications from for for “thoroughly screened asylum seekers from non-high-risk countries.” The agency has not stated which countries are “high risk” or whether “high-risk countries” means countries on the Expanded Travel and Immigration Ban.
No, the hold only applies to asylum applications filed with USCIS by individuals who are not in removal/ deportation proceedings and who are from “high-risk” countries. Asylum applications that are filed only with USCIS and not in immigration court are called “affirmative” asylum applications.
Immigration judges can still grant asylum to individuals who filed asylum applications in immigration court, which are called “defensive” asylum applications. The Trump administration is introducing many changes to how immigration courts operate, so it is best to consult with an immigration attorney if you have a case in immigration court and you have filed or plan to file an application for asylum.
Yes. Nothing in the policy suggests that USCIS will refuse to accept new asylum applications. However, during the “hold” or “pause” USCIS will not make decisions on these applications.
If you are not in removal/deportation proceedings, and you were planning to apply for asylum, we recommend that you consult with an immigration lawyer as soon as possible. To obtain asylum it is important that you apply within one year of your last entry to the U.S.
There are some exceptions to the one-year filing deadline for asylum, but for most people the USCIS memo does not waive the deadline. If you are getting close to or past your deadline to file, it is important that you consult with an immigration lawyer as soon as you can.
It may depend on whether you filed your application with USCIS or made the request directly to an immigration judge.
Asylum applications filed with USCIS: Currently USCIS has paused decisions on asylum applications by people from “high-risk” countries, but it does not state whether the agency will still conduct interviews or make decisions on whether to grant or deny asylum applications in the future.
Asylum applications filed in immigration court: The memo should have no effect on immigration courts’ handling of asylum applications, although there have been many recent changes in immigration courts that could impact your case for asylum.
Maybe. It’s not clear whether these policies will impact work permit (also known as an employment authorization document or “EAD”) applications and renewals.
If you are from an ‘Expanded Travel and Immigration Ban’ country, USCIS is placing a hold on work permit renewals for asylum applicants, so your renewal will likely be delayed. However, if you applied for asylum and for a work permit for the first time, USCIS has made an exception to its “hold” for initial work permits for asylum applicants and your first work permit should not be delayed.
It depends. If you are not from a country listed on the ‘Expanded Travel and Immigration Ban’, this new policy should not affect any pending applications you have filed with USCIS or applications you file in the future (except for asylum applications – see above).
The December 2, 2025 USCIS memo does not define what a “benefit request” is but it does give examples, including:
The January 1, 2026 memo gives examples of “benefits requests” that are “exceptions” to the hold – meaning the following applications should be processed normally, and not delayed:
The December 2, 2025 memo also states that USCIS screenings, including credible fear interviews and reasonable fear interviews, are not “benefit requests.” But because neither memo specifically defines what a “benefits request” is, we are not sure right now what other applications the USCIS may consider to be within this category.
Maybe. The new policy requires USCIS to “re-review” certain approved “benefit requests” only for individuals from the countries on the Expanded Travel and Immigration Ban list.
USCIS had not made clear what exactly it means to “re-review” approved immigration applications. If you have an approved immigration application, and any federal government official contacts you about this application or about your immigration status, we recommend that you contact an immigration attorney as soon as possible.
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