U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently updated its Policy Manual to reduce the maximum validity period of Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) for certain categories of aliens.
The maximum validity period for initial and renewal EADs will be changed from 5 years back to 18 months for the following individuals:
On December 2, 2025, USCIS issued a policy memorandum placing a hold on numerous immigration benefit requests and ordering the re-examination of previously approved cases.
What the Memo Says: Key Provisions
In short: thousands of pending and even approved immigration benefit cases could now be delayed or re-evaluated. The USCIS policy memorandum states that in light of recent threats to the American people:
In the wake of a deadly shooting of two National Guard members in Washington, D.C., U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has been instructed to pause all asylum decisions until further notice.
Asylum officers at USCIS, a branch of the Department of Homeland Security, have been told to refrain from approving, denying or closing affirmative asylum applications received by the agency.
The directive comes after authorities reported that the perpetrator of the shooting was an Afghan national who had previously been granted asylum.
Officials have framed the pause as a measure to “reassess immigration and vetting procedures” in light of public safety concerns. This decision will create delays for thousands of asylum seekers who are already navigating a complex and uncertain system.
In-person appointments for applicants seeking updates on their cases are also canceled until further notice.
According to internal guidance, officers may continue conducting asylum interviews and reviewing cases up to the point of issuing a decision. “Once you’ve reached decision entry, stop and hold,” the directive stated.
On November 28th USCIS Director Joseph Edlow confirmed the news on X.
On Tuesday, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will issue a Federal Register notice enforcing new fees for certain immigration benefit requests postmarked on or after July 22, 2025. Benefit requests submitted to the agency without the proper fees will be rejected.
These new fees are part of the H.R. 1 Reconciliation Bill. A portion of these new fees will be deposited into a U.S. Treasury account that primarily funds the operations of USCIS.
Please be aware that the Federal Register Notice does not include all the new fees mandated by the new bill. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will issue a future announcement regarding the implementation of fees that have not been addressed in Tuesday’s notice.
What are the new fees?
A new lawsuit filed by a man detained in San Diego, California, is challenging the controversial practice of courthouse arrests by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) taking place in recent months. The case could offer critical insight into the government’s approach in making these arrests. (A.M. v. Larose (3:25-cv-01412))
The man identified in court filings as A.M. is seeking asylum in the United States after being subjected to torture in his home country from his human rights advocacy. On June 3, he arrived for what he believed would be a routine immigration court hearing but was shocked to find that the judge had dismissed his case and ICE agents were waiting outside, ready to arrest him and take him to Otay Mesa’s Detention Facility to eventually be deported.
Unfortunately, A.M.’s case is not unique. In recent months, the Trump administration has enforced a controversial policy in immigration courts to expedite deportations by instructing judges to swiftly dismiss cases, subjecting individuals to expedited removal without giving them a meaningful opportunity to contest the government’s claims or consult attorneys.
This approach, detailed in a May 30 directive from the Executive Office for Immigration Review, encourages judges to grant oral motions to dismiss without the standard 10-day response period, effectively eliminating opportunities for individuals to contest their cases. Once dismissed, individuals are immediately eligible for expedited removal, making it possible for ICE officers to arrest them.
The growing presence of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials at immigration courthouses nationwide has prompted several states to enact laws preventing ICE from arresting or detaining individuals attending their immigration hearings.
One such law passed by the state of New York is the “Protect Our Courts Act,” which shields individuals from being arrested by federal immigration authorities like ICE while traveling to, attending, or leaving court proceedings. This law is designed to guarantee that people can access the justice system without fearing immigration-related repercussions. It forbids arrests in these situations unless a judicial warrant or court order is shown to court personnel.
On June 12th the Justice Department sued the state of New York challenging the constitutionality of the Act under the supremacy clause. The government argues that it unlawfully obstructs federal immigration enforcement operations.
The Trump administration is seeking to invalidate these laws to facilitate detention and removal. According to the government, arrests at courthouses helps prevent individuals from evading authorities and decreases safety risks because of the security offered by courthouses.
In response to the lawsuit, the New York Civil Liberties Union issued a statement defending the state law adding, “This latest attempt by the Trump administration to meddle in our laws would push immigrant communities further into the shadows, throw due process out the window, and weaken trust in our justice system — making everyone less safe. It sends a dangerous message: that ICE can and should operate wherever it wants, regardless of the human cost.”
On Wednesday, May 28, 2025, a federal judge from the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts issued a nationwide court order lifting the Trump administration’s suspension of adjudications for immigration benefit applications submitted by noncitizens who were lawfully paroled into the United States under certain categorical parole programs implemented during the Biden administration.
Those affected by the suspensions were parolees in the following programs:
We are pleased to report that on April 14, 2025, a Massachusetts federal judge issued a temporary nationwide injunction, suspending the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) termination of the Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela (CHNV) parole programs. The termination was set to take effect on April 24, 2025, and would have ended parole authorization and any associated benefits, including work authorization for individuals in the United States under the CHNV parole programs. The judge’s decision suspends the Trump administration’s cancellation of these programs.
What You Need to Know
In President Trump’s latest legal battles, a federal judge from the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts has dealt a blow to the administration’s plans to fast-track the deportations of thousands of undocumented migrants with final orders of removal.
Today, federal judge Brian Murphy issued a nationwide temporary restraining order immediately blocking U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from deporting migrants from the United States to countries with which they have no existing relationship, without first providing them written notice and a meaningful opportunity to claim relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT) for immigrants fearing persecution.
This decision was made in response to a lawsuit filed by a group of migrants challenging ICE policies that expedite the removal of undocumented immigrants released from detention to third countries.
The judge’s court order specifically prohibits the U.S. government from:
“Removing any individual subject to a final order of removal from the United States to a third country, i.e., a country other than the country designated for removal in immigration proceedings, UNLESS and UNTIL [the government] provide[s] that individual, and their respective immigration counsel, if any, with written notice of the third country to where they may be removed, and UNTIL Defendants provide a meaningful opportunity for that individual to submit an application for CAT protection to the immigration court, and if any such application is filed, UNTIL that individual receives a final agency decision on any such application.”
Today March 21, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released an advance copy of a notice in the Federal Register ending four Biden-era parole programs for Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela (CHNV).
When
The temporary parole period of aliens in the United States under the CHNV parole programs will terminate on April 24th (30 days from the date of the notice’s publication in the Federal Register)
Parolees without a lawful basis to remain in the United States following this termination of the CHNV parole programs must depart the United States before the program’s termination date.
Who will be impacted
Nationals from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela who flew to the U.S. under Biden’s CHNV humanitarian parole program.
Parolees granted admission under CHNV were given a temporary two-year parole period to remain in the U.S., work authorization, and protection from deportation. The purpose of the program was to reduce illegal immigration at the southern border and provide alternative legal avenues.
Approximately 532,000 nationals entered the United States using this program.
Termination of Employment Authorization Documents
Parole-based employment authorization for CHNV parolees will also automatically terminate on April 24th and will be revoked pursuant to 8 CFR 274a.14(b).
Expedited Removal
Following parole termination, DHS intends to promptly remove aliens who entered the United States under the CHNV parole programs, who do not depart the United States before their parole termination date and who do not have any lawful basis to remain in the United States.
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