Diversity Visa Pause Lifted After Court Ruling in Medani v. Trump

UPDATE: On August 28, U.S. District Judge Edward Davila in the Northern District of California ordered the State Department to resume issuing diversity visas. The Medani v. Trump preliminary injunction also instructed USCIS to restart processing Green Card applications from DV selectees.

As a result, the State Department confirmed it will resume processing diversity visas.

The ruling doesn't guarantee anyone a visa or Green Card. Selectees still have to meet standard eligibility rules, and cases already flagged for extra security screening stay there until that review wraps up. In addition, the ruling is a preliminary injunction in a case that's still being litigated, which means the Trump administration could appeal.

Timing is the tighter constraint. Under U.S. law, DV-2026 selectees are only eligible for a diversity visa through the end of the fiscal year on September 30, and visas can run out before then if the State Department issues every number Congress authorized for the year. Anyone not approved by that date loses their selection.

Update, December 23: The U.S. Department of State has issued guidance officially pausing the Diversity Immigrant Visa (DV) Program. No new diversity visas will be issued while the State Department evaluates its screening and vetting procedures, and no timeline is given for the program’s pause.

The guidance says diversity visa appointments will continue, but no new visas will be issued. It also clarifies that no visas are being revoked during this period of evaluation.

Update, December 22: USCIS has issued a policy memo with additional details about its pause in processing adjustment of status filings for diversity visas. The memo directs officers to hold final adjudication on pending Form I-485 applications filed by people under the Diversity Immigrant Visa (DV) Program, making it all but impossible for these applicants to receive Green Cards until the hold is released.

Decisions about related work permits, advance parole, and certain waivers for DV Program beneficiaries are also on hold. The memo specifies that cases may continue moving through processing, but final decisions are paused while USCIS conducts a comprehensive review of policies, screening, and vetting procedures for the DV Program.

This means diversity visas won’t automatically be denied, but they will be scrutinized more closely while final decisions are paused.

The memo also states that applicants may be subject to interviews or re-interviews as part of the review process. Derivative applicants, such as spouses or children, are also subject to the hold.

The updated guidance applies to USCIS adjudication for those selected in the DV lottery who are inside the United States. As of this update, the State Department has not published guidance indicating changes to DV consular processing at U.S. embassies and consulates for applicants abroad.

The Trump administration first announced it was pausing the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program (DV Program) in a social media post by former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

The move comes after news that the suspect in the shooting at Brown University and in the killing of an MIT professor obtained a Green Card through the DV Program. The suspect, Portuguese national Claudio Neves Valente, attended Brown on a student visa in 2000 and later obtained a Green Card through the DV Program, according to news reports from the Associated Press.

In a post on X, Noem said she’s directed USCIS to pause the DV Program immediately.

The DV Program is designed as a Green Card pathway for immigrants from countries with typically low immigration rates. It is run as a lottery and each year allows up to 55,000 people to enter the U.S. through the program. Individuals selected through the visa lottery are still subject to standard vetting and background checks through USCIS or the State Department as part of the Green Card process.

Applications specifically listed in this pause include:

• Form I-485 - Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status
• Form I-765 - Application for Employment Authorization
• Form I-131 - Request for an Advance Parole Document filed using the Application for Travel Documents, Parole Documents, and Arrival/Departure Records
• Form I-601 - Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility
• Form I-212 - Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission into the United States After Deportation or Removal
• Form I-824 - Application for Action on an Approved Application or Petition

Although the State Department administers the Diversity Visa program, a small number of lottery winners already live in the U.S. at the time of the lottery. In those cases, USCIS processes their adjustment of status application to obtain a Green Card.

Congress created the DV Program through the Immigration Act, which was passed in 1990.