Weekly Immigration News Roundup: September 4
Below are some of the latest headlines, with insights from Manifest immigration attorney Avalon L. Paul.
A court lifts the diversity visa pause
On August 28, a federal judge in California ordered the State Department to resume issuing diversity visas and directed USCIS to restart Green Card processing for selectees. However, selectees in this cycle are only eligible through September 30, and visas can run out before then.
Paul: “The order restarts processing, but it does not guarantee anyone a visa. If you were selected this cycle, my suggestion is to confirm your file is actually moving by September 30.”
The State Department ends its 75-country immigrant visa pause
On August 28, the State Department filed pleadings that confirmed it is no longer applying its pause on immigrant visa issuance to nationals of 75 countries. However, it also temporarily paused immigrant visa appointments worldwide in order to train consular officers on a new public charge standard.
Paul: “The country list is gone, but the concern that drove it now runs through the public charge ground of inadmissibility. For many applicants, that means they must submit additional proof regardless of their nationality.”
An appeals court lets USCIS resume reviewing benefits it already approved
On August 14, a First Circuit panel allowed USCIS to restart its comprehensive re-review policy while its appeal proceeds. The decision follows a district court vacating that policy, along with three others in June.
Paul: “The asylum and benefits holds are still vacated, so those cases should be moving. Re-review is the exception, and it is the one that reaches people who already got an approval, so my suggestion is to monitor the news and your case for any communication.”
Two executive orders on birthright citizenship reach a federal court
On August 28, a federal judge declined a temporary restraining order against two executive orders targeting birth tourism. However, she issued this decision because the pending lawsuit had not yet been amended to name the new order.
Paul: “A 2020 rule already made a visitor visa harder to get for a pregnant traveler. What is new is that this order reaches a visa someone already holds, though the implementing guidance is not published yet and the affected population appears to be very small.”
Several form editions take effect mid-September.
New editions of Form I-765 and Form I-539 take effect September 15, and a new Form I-485 follows on September 18. USCIS has said it will reject older editions rather than return them for correction, so there is no grace period on either date.
Paul: “Check the edition date before you sign, because there is no grace period here. Then check whether you have a credit or security freeze, because USCIS can now go straight to the bureaus, and sitting on a request to lift it means you are the one waiting.”
USCIS restores nonprofit voter registration at naturalization ceremonies
On August 31, USCIS wrote the nonprofit voter registration rules back into the Policy Manual, following an August 3 court order pausing the stricter policy. Participating organizations must file a one-time attestation at least 60 days before a ceremony.
Paul: “If you have a ceremony coming up, expect nonprofit volunteers on site to help you register. The more useful detail is that this is no longer a stopgap tied to the lawsuit, since USCIS put the rules in the Policy Manual itself.”
DHS puts H-4 work permits back on its regulatory agenda
The federal agency’s regulatory Fall 2026 agenda includes a proposal to remove H-4 spouses from the group eligible to request a work permit. However, the actual proposal has not been released in the Federal Register, and it may take several months to take effect.
Paul: “Nothing changes today. DHS classified this as a long-term action, and it would still need a proposed rule, White House review, and notice-and-comment before anything took effect, which points to years rather than months.”
Public charge guidance takes effect September 18.
For benefits received on or after that date, USCIS can weigh a broader range of public benefits when deciding whether an adjustment applicant is likely to become a public charge. Benefits received before September 18 are assessed under the narrower prior standard.
Paul: “The exemptions matter as much as the standard here, so the first question is whether public charge applies to your category at all. If it does, get the sponsor’s income and asset documentation in order before September 18 rather than after somebody asks.”
