State Department Immigrant Visa Pause: Who Is Affected

What the State Department announced

On 14 January 2026 the State Department published a notice titled “Immigrant Visa Processing Updates for Nationalities at High Risk of Public Benefits Usage.” It paused the issuance of immigrant visas at U.S. embassies and consulates to nationals of listed countries, effective 21 January 2026. The notice links the pause to concern about the use of public benefits.

The pause was an administrative policy, not a change to a statute. The notice said it was temporary.

The 75 countries on the list

The list in the January 2026 notice was: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Burma, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Colombia, Cote d’Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, The Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyz Republic, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Nepal, Nicaragua, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Pakistan, Republic of the Congo, Russia, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Uruguay, Uzbekistan and Yemen.

The Department’s FAQ said that an applicant who is a dual national and applies with a valid passport from a country that is not on the list was not covered. The notice also describes exceptions, for example for certain adoption cases.

What the pause did and did not stop

The pause applied to the issuance of immigrant visas in every category, including family-based and employment-based cases. In the Department’s words, applicants from listed countries could submit applications and attend interviews, and the Department would keep scheduling appointments, but no immigrant visas would be issued to them during the pause.

• It did not stop filing an immigrant visa application or attending the consular interview.
• It did not stop USCIS filings inside the U.S. A person eligible to adjust status with Form I-485 was not affected by this policy.
• It did not cancel visas that had already been issued.
• It did not apply to tourist visas, which are nonimmigrant visas.

The court ruling of 21 August 2026

Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC) and other plaintiffs challenged the policy in CLINIC v. Rubio, No. 1:26-cv-00858, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. On 21 August 2026 the court held that the policy was contrary to law and in excess of the Secretary of State’s statutory authority. It ruled that the policy conflicts with the immigrant visa statutes (8 U.S.C. 1201(g) and 1152(a)(1)(A)) and with the Department’s own regulation (22 CFR 40.6).

The court vacated the policy nationwide, which means it set the policy aside. It also vacated any immigrant visa refusal that was based only on the policy and sent those cases back to the Department. The State Department’s notice, updated on 28 August 2026, says that as of 21 August 2026 the January 2026 pause is no longer in effect.

The appeal and what is still open

The government appealed to the Second Circuit (No. 26-2573, filed 15 September 2026). In a letter filed on the district court docket (Doc. 126), the government reported that on 19 October 2026 the Second Circuit granted a temporary stay in part. The stay covers only the part of the order that vacated and sent back individual refusals based solely on the policy. The court denied temporary relief as to the vacatur of the policy itself and the declaratory judgment, and referred the stay motion to a three-judge panel.

A stay is a pause of part of a court order while the appeal goes on. It does not decide the appeal. Anyone whose case depends on this issue should check the State Department notice and the court docket again before acting.

What an applicant should expect now

Ending the pause does not mean a visa is issued automatically. Each applicant is still reviewed individually, including under the public-charge ground of inadmissibility and the Form I-864 affidavit of support in family cases.

The public-charge rules also changed for people applying inside the U.S. A final rule published in the Federal Register on 20 July 2026 rescinded the 2022 public-charge regulation. USCIS guidance of 18 August 2026 says the new approach applies to Form I-485 applications filed on or after 18 September 2026 and that officers weigh the factors the statute lists. Read the instructions for the current Form I-485 edition before filing.

For a consular case, follow the instructions of the embassy and the National Visa Center for your own case. Whether to attend an interview, travel or change a filing is a decision to make with an attorney who has your documents.