Effective January 21, 2026, the State Department indefinitely paused the issuance of immigrant visas for applicants from 75 countries on the stated basis of foreign nationals potentially being a “high risk” of becoming a...more
The U.S. Department of State announced a significant policy change this month. Beginning Jan. 21, immigrant visa processing will be paused for individuals from 75 countries. This development directly impacts employers who...more
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has announced that, effective January 21, 2026, it has paused the issuance of immigrant visas for nationals of 75 countries as part of a broad policy shift aimed at reassessing...more
On January 14, 2026, the State Department announced on X that it would pause indefinitely the immigrant visa processing for citizens of 75 countries globally. The rationale for the pause is that the agency, through consular...more
The Department of State recently announced a temporary pause on the issuance of immigrant visas to nationals of specified “high-risk” countries, effective January 21, 2026. The administration calls the measure part of a...more
On January 14, 2026, the Department of State (DOS) announced that it will suspend immigrant visa processing for nationals of 75 countries, effective January 21, 2026. The list of impacted countries includes the following:...more
Effective January 21, 2026, the U.S. Department of State will indefinitely pause the issuance of immigrant visas (connected to the permanent residence process) for nationals of 75 countries in an expansion of its internal...more
The U.S. Department of State has announced that effective January 21, 2026, it will pause all immigrant visa issuances for nationals of a large group of countries identified as being at elevated risk of using public benefits....more
On January 14, 2026, the Trump Administration announced a major change to immigrant visa processing for applicants from 75 countries, effective January 21, 2026....more
Effective January 21, 2026, the U.S. Department of State announced that it will indefinitely pause all immigrant visa issuances for applicants from 75 specific countries the Department deems are “at high risk of public...more
Beginning January 21, the State Department will suspend the issuance of immigrant visas (consular applications for permanent residence) for nationals of 75 countries* while it reevaluates how it determines whether applicants...more
On January 14, 2026, the Department of State (DOS) announced a pause in the issuance of immigrant visas for nationals of the 75 countries (listed below), effective January 21, 2026....more
The US Department of State has announced that it has issued a memo directing consular posts worldwide to indefinitely pause immigrant visa adjudications for nationals of 75 countries, effective January 21, 2026. This...more
The U.S. Department of State has announced that it will suspend immigrant visa processing for applicants from approximately 75 countries, beginning January 21, 2026, as part of a broader reassessment of consular screening and...more
The Department of State is expected to pause consular immigrant visa processing for nationals of 75 countries starting Jan. 21, 2026, according to multiple public reports. This development represents a significant expansion...more
The end of 2025 brought a fast-moving series of immigration developments with direct implications for hiring, compliance and workforce planning. USCIS issued a sweeping pause on immigration benefits for nationals of 19...more
On November 19, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) that would rescind the 2022 Public Charge Ground of...more
In early November, the U.S. Department of State issued a cable for consular officials located worldwide significantly expanding the grounds of excludability for foreign applicants for U.S. immigrant benefits. To date,...more
The U.S. Department of State has reportedly issued an internal cable directing consular officers to significantly expand the review of health conditions when assessing if visa applicants are likely to become a public charge...more
Since former President Donald Trump won re-election, there has been a flurry of speculation about what to expect during his second administration. While there is much we don’t know, his first presidency offers clues regarding...more
The public charge provisions in the Immigration Nationality Ac (INA) have been part of U.S. immigration law for decades. We recently reported that on December 23, 2022, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) began using a...more
On December 9, 2022, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the release of a new version (12/23/22) of Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, in connection with a new...more
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently issued a new “public charge” final rule that will go into effect December 23, 2022. The new rule will apply to all permanent residency (Green Card) applications filed on or...more
After years of litigation followed by uncertainty, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has taken the official action of issuing a new final rule that “restores the historical understanding of a ‘public charge’ that had...more
On September 8, 2022, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced its long waited public charge rule. As outlined in our previous alert, in March 2021, USCIS rescinded its public charge rule, which...more