Trump Administration Ordered to Resume Migrant Visa Applications

A federal judge has temporarily stopped the Trump administration from suspending key migrant protections that were created during President Biden’s term, handing a significant win to advocates and migrants relying on those programs.

The decision, issued Wednesday by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani, requires the government to resume accepting applications for temporary humanitarian protections, known as "parole" programs. These protections allow people from countries like Afghanistan, Ukraine, Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to live and work legally in the United States.

Background: Trump Sought to Cancel Biden’s Programs

Earlier this year, President Donald Trump ordered the Department of Homeland Security to cancel the Biden-era parole programs. These programs had offered temporary legal status to thousands of people who fled conflict, disaster, or persecution in their home countries.

Trump’s move was part of a broader push to toughen immigration policies and limit legal pathways for migrants. The administration had paused processing of new applications, prompting a lawsuit from advocates and legal groups.

Judge: Government Not Above Judicial Review

In her ruling, Judge Talwani recognized that the executive branch has wide discretion in immigration matters but made clear that courts still have a role to play.

“This court emphasizes, as it did in its prior order, that it is not in the public interest to manufacture a circumstance in which hundreds of thousands of individuals will, over the course of several months, become unlawfully present in the country,” she wrote. “[S]uch that these individuals cannot legally work in their communities or provide for themselves and their families.”

The same judge had issued a similar ruling in April concerning migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela who had been protected under the CHNV Program. The Trump administration has appealed that decision to the Supreme Court.

Advocates Applaud the Ruling

Human rights groups welcomed the judge’s latest decision. Anwen Hughes, a lawyer for Human Rights First — which is representing plaintiffs in the case — said in a statement, “This ruling reaffirms what we have always known to be true: our government has a legal obligation to respect the rights of all humanitarian parole beneficiaries and the Americans who have welcomed them into their communities.”

What’s Next

The ruling allows time for the legal case to move forward, but the Trump administration could still challenge it in higher courts. For now, the protections remain in place, offering temporary relief to thousands of migrants and their families across the U.S.