A US federal court has struck down a Trump administration policy that suspended the issuance of immigrant visas to applicants from 75 countries, including Pakistan, ruling that the restrictions violated federal immigration law.
The decision, issued on Friday by US District Judge Jeannette Vargas in Manhattan, represents a significant legal setback for the Trump administration’s immigration policies.
The State Department had announced the visa suspension in January, affecting applicants from a wide range of countries in South Asia, Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, the Caribbean and the Balkans.
Judge declares visa policy “patently unlawful”
In her ruling, Judge Vargas described the policy as “patently unlawful” and said it exceeded the statutory authority of Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The judge said the policy was incompatible with the federal legal framework governing the processing of immigrant visas by US consular officers.
According to the ruling, the State Department had effectively imposed a blanket restriction based on the nationality of applicants, preventing immigrant visas from being issued to people from the designated countries.
Judge Vargas wrote that such nationality-based restrictions directly conflicted with the statutory immigration scheme established by Congress.
“The policy, which categorically prohibits the issuance of immigrant visas based upon the nationality of the applicant, represents a direct abrogation of this statutory scheme,” she said.
Pakistan among 75 affected countries
Pakistan was among the 75 countries affected by the State Department’s policy.
The restrictions also applied to several other regions and countries, including Bangladesh, Latin American nations such as Brazil, Colombia and Uruguay, and Balkan countries including Bosnia and Albania.
Applicants from numerous countries in Africa, the Middle East and the Caribbean were also affected by the suspension.
The State Department had justified the policy by arguing that applicants from the designated countries were considered to be at a higher risk of becoming a “public charge” and relying on local, state or federal government resources in the United States.
However, the court ruled that the blanket nationality-based approach was not legally justified under the relevant immigration framework.
US Judge Strikes Down Trump Administration Visa Pause Affecting 39 Countries
Lawsuit challenged suspension
The case was brought by immigrant rights organisations, including the Catholic Legal Immigration Network and African Communities Together.
Immigrant visa applicants, as well as US citizens sponsoring family members from the affected countries, were also among the plaintiffs.
The legal challenge argued that the policy had unlawfully disrupted the processing of immigrant visas for people from the listed countries and affected families seeking to reunite in the United States.
Following the ruling, the State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Setback for Trump’s immigration agenda
The decision comes as President Donald Trump continues to pursue an aggressive crackdown on immigration, arguing that tighter controls are necessary to improve domestic security.
The administration’s broader immigration policies have faced repeated legal challenges from civil rights and immigrant advocacy groups.
Rights organisations argue that some of the measures have violated constitutional protections, including free speech and due process rights. They have also raised concerns that aggressive immigration enforcement has created fear and insecurity within ethnic minority communities.
Critics have further warned about the potential for racial or ethnic profiling under some enforcement policies.
What the ruling means for visa applicants
The court’s decision specifically strikes down the suspension policy that had blocked immigrant visa issuance based on an applicant’s nationality.
For applicants from Pakistan and the other 74 countries, the ruling could remove a major barrier that had affected family-based and other immigrant visa applications.
However, the decision does not necessarily mean that visas will be issued automatically. Applicants must still meet all normal legal and eligibility requirements under US immigration law.
The Trump administration may also decide to challenge the ruling, meaning further legal proceedings could determine the policy’s long-term future.
