A federal judge in New York has ruled that the Trump Administration's pause on immigrant visa issuance for nationals of 75 countries is unlawful. The policy had been in effect since January 2026 and prevented many otherwise eligible immigrant visa applicants from receiving immigrant visas at U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. The government may appeal the decision.

As a result of the ruling, immigrant visa processing for affected applicants should resume. The list of impacted countries can be found here.

Importantly, the court's decision does not affect the Administration's separate security-based travel restrictions involving 39 countries. Those restrictions remain in place.

What Does This Mean for the Visa Bulletin?

The resumption of immigrant visa processing could have a significant impact on employment-based immigrant visa availability in FY 2027. Thousands of immigrant visa cases that had been on hold may now move forward, increasing demand for immigrant visa numbers. As a result, MU anticipates additional retrogression pressure, particularly for Employment-Based Rest of World (ROW) categories.

There is some positive news as well. Additional employment-based immigrant visas are expected to become available in FY 2027 due to the rollover of unused family-based immigrant visas from FY 2026. This may help offset some of the increased demand created by the end of the visa pause.

MU Law will continue to monitor developments and provide updates regarding any appeal and the impact on immigrant visa processing.