The Trump administration on Friday introduced a sweeping immigration policy requiring most temporary visa holders and humanitarian parolees in the U.S. to return to their home countries to apply for green cards.
New Policy on Green Card Applications
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a memo instructing agency officers to treat applications for “adjustment of status” filed within the U.S. as an “extraordinary form of relief.”
Zach Kahler, a USCIS spokesperson, said, “From now on, an alien who is in the U.S. temporarily and wants a Green Card must return to their home country to apply, except in extraordinary circumstances. We’re returning to the original intent of the law to ensure aliens navigate our nation’s immigration system properly.”
Who Is Affected?
Immigration lawyers warn that the policy could impact hundreds of thousands of people currently working in the U.S. on temporary visas who are trying to gain permanent residency without leaving the country.
Rosanna Berardi, an immigration lawyer in New York, said, “Afghans who assisted U.S. forces and Ukrainians fleeing war face a specific trap.
The memo treats their choice to apply for a green card inside the U.S. as a negative factor because their admission was temporary. Many have nowhere safe to return to.”
Todd Pomerleau, another immigration attorney, argued that the Immigration and Nationality Act allows individuals legally admitted into the U.S. to adjust their status without leaving the country.
“You can’t, through a stroke of a pen, overturn a statute. I think it’s illegal, and it’s going to get shut down in court very quickly,” he said.
Legal Experts Raise Concerns
Shev Dalal-Dheini, senior government director of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, noted that Congress designed the U.S.-based adjustment system to prevent family separations and help employers retain staff during visa backlogs.
“Since the 1950s, Congress has allowed non-immigrants to adjust their status in the U.S. to that of a green card, and over the years, eligibility has expanded,” Dalal-Dheini explained.
She added, “This administration says they’re going after criminals, but at the same time, they are upending the process for people who are following the law. These are individuals who came here legally or were admitted legally, and now, overnight, a policy memo is upending their path to residency.”
What This Means for Visa Holders
The policy could force many temporary workers, refugees, and humanitarian parolees to return to countries that may still be unsafe or unstable. Immigration lawyers predict that the memo could face legal challenges in the coming weeks, arguing that it contradicts existing law.
The Trump administration has positioned the change as a way to enforce the original intent of U.S. immigration laws, but critics warn that it may disrupt families, employment, and long-established legal processes.
