US halts immigration applications from several countries Trump admin calls ‘high risk’
The Trump administration has ordered an immediate pause on all immigration applications filed by people from several countries following the shooting of two National Guard members in Washington, D.C., last week.
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the agency that processes and approves requests for immigration benefits, shared the policy update in a memo on Dec. 2.
This decision expands on the president's June order , which barred the entry of citizens from 12 countries. The new policy effectively freezes all pending immigration applications for a total of 19 countries that the Trump administration considers "high risk" for national security.
The freeze applies to a broad range of benefits, including applications for green cards and naturalization, for nationals of the following countries:
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Afghanistan
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Myanmar (Burma)
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Chad
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Republic of the Congo
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Equatorial Guinea
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Eritrea
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Haiti
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Iran
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Libya
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Somalia
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Sudan
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Yemen
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Burundi
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Cuba
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Laos
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Sierra Leone
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Togo
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Turkmenistan
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Venezuela
The new policy will allow the USCIS to reexamine green-card holders who are already residing in the U.S. as it reviews cases that were done under the Biden administration and indefinitely pauses asylum decisions.
"We're going back on all of these folks that have applied for asylum, people that would be traveling to this country, and looking at more information, what ... social media platforms they may have visited, the communications that they have, biometric information and data that we can collect from them, but also from their government too," U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told CNN's Kaitlan Collins on Monday.
USCIS cited the shooting of two National Guard troops by a suspect who is an Afghan national as a reason for the new policy.
One National Guard member, Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died from her injuries, while another, Andrew Wolfe, 24, was critically injured and remains in the hospital, BBC News reported.
"In light of identified concerns and the threat to the American people, USCIS has determined that a comprehensive re-review, potential interview, and re-interview of all aliens from high-risk countries of concern who entered the United States on or after January 20, 2021 is necessary," a statement shared on Dec. 2 reads. "Lastly, USCIS may, when appropriate, extend this review and re-interview process to aliens who entered the United States outside of this timeframe."
The hold will remain in place until USCIS Director Joseph Edlow decides to lift it, the memo states. The agency has given itself 90 days to create a prioritized list of cases for review and potential referral to immigration enforcement or other law enforcement agencies.
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