Immigration & Visa Policy

Immigration Enforcement

ICE Operations

Dec. 16 - A panel of the Seventh Circuit on Monday partly stayed a district court’s orders enforcing and extending a 2022 consent decree governing ICE’s warrantless arrests in the Chicago area. The panel stayed the district court’s order requiring the release of individuals allegedly arrested without warrants in violation of 8 U.S.C. §1357(a)(2), but denied the government’s motion to stay the 118-day extension of the consent decree. (Opinion.) Bill Shipley analyzed the decision. (Shipwreckedcrew.)
Dec. 15 - An immigration judge on Thursday night issued an order purporting to “[c]orrect[] [s]crivener’s [e]rror” in a 2019 order of withholding of removal against Kilmar Abrego Garcia, amending the order to include an order of removal. Abrego Garcia on Friday petitioned the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland for a temporary restraining order barring the government from re-detaining him until there is a hearing on the legality of detention. (Emergency Motion.) For analysis, see Andrew McCarthy. (National Review.)
Dec. 11 - Judge Paula Xinis (D. Ma.) today ordered the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to release Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s from ICE custody “immediately.” Judge Xinis determined that DHS has no lawful authority to detain or remove him because no final order of removal exists and wrote that the department’s “conduct over the past months belie that his detention has been for the basic purpose of effectuating removal, lending further support that Abrego Garcia should be held no longer.” (Memorandum opinion.) (WaPo.)
Dec. 8 - The founder of ICEBlock, an app that allows users to report ICE activity, filed a suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against Attorney General Pam Bondi and other top administration officials. The complaint alleges that the government unconstitutionally pressured Apple to remove the app from the App Store in violation of the First Amendment. (Complaint.) (NYT.)
Dec. 3 - The administration is now pushing to prioritize the deportation of more than 1,860 Afghans who were previously ordered to leave the country. (NYT.) Federal authorities have additionally begun an ICE operation in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area targeting undocumented Somali immigrants using federally deployed “strike teams” — a move the Times reports comes as President Trump has escalated rhetoric against Somalis living in the United States over the past week. (NYT.)
Dec. 3 - Plaintiffs have withdrawn a lawsuit challenging Border Patrol’s use of force in the Chicago area after the agency reduced its presence there, ending a case that had alleged “extreme brutality” against protesters during Operation Midway Blitz. (NYT.) See a previous Roundup for background on the case.
Dec. 1 - At least 225 federal judges across 35 states have rejected the administration’s ICE policy mandating mass detention for nearly all immigrants in deportation proceedings, with eight judges nationwide so far siding with the government. (Politico.) Steve Vladeck noted that a district judge’s recent certification of a nationwide class action for declaratory relief against the policy “may accelerate how quickly this issue moves to the courts of appeals and, inevitably it seems, to the Supreme Court.” (One First.)
Nov. 28 - Judge R. Brooke Jackson (D. Colo.) on Tuesday granted in part plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction, prohibiting federal immigration officers from making warrantless arrests in Colorado unless officers have probable cause that a person is unlawfully present and that they are likely to flee before a warrant can be obtained. (Order.) (NYT.)
Nov. 24 - The Trump administration gave notice to a federal judge in the Northern District of California on Friday that it had completed the court-ordered “reasoned decision-making process,” a step required before the government may resume sharing Medicaid data with ICE. (Notice.) (Exhibit A.) (Politico.)
Nov. 24 - The Trump administration gave notice to a federal judge in the Northern District of California on Friday that it had completed the court-ordered “reasoned decision-making process,” a step required before the government may resume sharing Medicaid data with ICE. (Notice.) (Exhibit A.) (Politico.)
Nov. 21 - The Seventh Circuit on Thursday issued an administrative stay blocking a district court’s Oct. 7 and Nov. 13 orders that would have required ICE to begin releasing certain Chicago-area immigrant detainees by Friday, and set argument on the stay request for Dec. 2. (Order.) (NYT.)
Nov. 21 - Judge Sarah Ellis (N.D. Ill.) on Thursday issued an opinion defending her now-stayed preliminary injunction restricting federal agents’ crowd-control tactics during Illinois anti-ICE protests. (Opinion and Order.)
Nov. 20 - A panel of the Seventh Circuit on Wednesday stayed a preliminary injunction issued by Judge Sarah L. Ellis (N.D. Ill.) that forbade federal immigration agents from using specific crowd-control tactics and imposed requirements on their activities, calling the injunction “overbroad.” The court also ordered expedited briefing. (Order.) (NYT.)
Nov. 18 - The Trump administration on Monday filed a lawsuit against California in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California challenging two new state laws that prohibit federal agents from wearing masks and require plainclothes federal agents to visibly display identification when conducting operations in the state. (Complaint.) (Politico.)
Nov. 18 - Judge Mae A. D’Agostino (N.D.N.Y.) on Monday dismissed the Justice Department’s lawsuit challenging a New York law and two executive orders that limit civil immigration arrests in and around courthouses and restrict state and local authorities from assisting federal civil immigration enforcement. (Memorandum Decision and Order.)
Nov. 17 - Federal immigration agents arrested 81 people in the Charlotte, North Carolina area on Saturday as the Department of Homeland Security announced it is “surging DHS law enforcement to Charlotte.” (WSJ.)
Nov. 14 - Judge Jeffrey I. Cummings (N.D. Ill) on Thursday ordered ICE to begin releasing the detainees it arrested in violation of a consent decree during Operation Midway Blitz in the Chicago area. (Order.) (Politico.)
Nov. 13 - Judge Jeffrey I. Cummings (N.D. Ill) said on Wednesday that he plans to order the release of hundreds of immigrants that federal agents arrested in the Chicago area in apparent violation of a consent decree. (NYT.)
Nov. 6 - Judge Robert W. Gettleman (N.D. Ill.) issued a temporary restraining order requiring ICE to “address the serious conditions demonstrated” at its Broadview, Illinois detention center, including deficiencies in sanitation, food, water, and medical access. (Order.) (NYT.)
Nov. 5 - A federal judge in the Northern District of Illinois stated that “some sort of temporary restraining order” was likely warranted after hearing testimony about “unnecessarily cruel” conditions at a suburban Chicago ICE detention facility. (NYT.)
Nov. 5 - Judge David C. Joseph (W.D. La.) on Tuesday denied a habeas petition, holding that ICE may detain noncitizens classified as applicants for admission in removal proceedings without bond under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2). (Memorandum Ruling.) Kyle Cheney noted that Judge Joseph is the third federal judge to rule in favor of the administration on the issue, while roughly 120 have ruled against it. (X.)
Oct. 31 - Judge Ann Aiken (D. Or.) on Wednesday denied a bid for a temporary restraining order by Oregon immigrant-rights groups accusing ICE of obstructing attorney access, allowing them two weeks to file a renewed injunction motion ahead of a Dec. 12 hearing. (Opinion and Order.)
Oct. 23 - U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents were sent to a Coast Guard base in Alameda, California, ahead of an immigration enforcement operation in the San Francisco Bay Area. (NYT.)
Oct. 22 - The Trump administration is reprogramming funds from the Big Beautiful Bill to pay immigration agents and other federal law enforcement officials during the government shutdown. (NYT.)
Oct. 21 - Representative Robert Garcia, ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, and Senator Richard Blumenthal, ranking member of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, announced on Monday that they have started a joint investigation into misconduct committed by federal agents during immigration operations, including the detainment of American citizens. (NYT.)
Oct. 15 - An unnamed Pentagon official confirmed on Tuesday that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have transferred about 20 migrants to the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (NYT.)
Oct. 9 - Judge Jeffrey I. Cummings (E.D. Ill.) on Tuesday granted plaintiffs’ motion to enforce a court order regarding a settlement agreement which imposes several obligations on ICE related to the warrantless arrests for civil violations of U.S. immigration law. (Opinion and Order.) (NYT.)
Oct. 3 - The Trump administration on Wednesday transferred the last 18 migrants held at the U.S. Navy base at Guantanamo back to the United States. (NYT.)

Asylum

Dec. 5 - U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced on Thursday that it will begin requiring some migrants to renew their work permits every 18 months instead of every five years in order to screen and vet migrants more often. (NYT.)
Nov. 28 - The government also said it was reviewing all asylum cases processed during the Biden administration, suspending all immigration applications from Afghan nationals, and requesting 500 more National Guard members in D.C. (NYT.) On Thursday night, President Trump posted on Truth Social that he would “permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the U.S. system to fully recover.” (Truth Social.) (NYT.)

Anti-ICE protests

Dec. 15 - The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Friday asked a Ninth Circuit panel to stay a preliminary injunction that prohibits federal agents from using excessive force against journalists and peaceful protesters at demonstrations in Southern California, arguing that the injunction, whose protection extends beyond the two named plaintiffs, is overbroad. (Courthouse News.)
Dec. 11 - Judge Ann Aiken (D. Or.) granted a 14-day temporary restraining order blocking enforcement of the Department of Homeland Security’s new “loud or unusual noise” rule, 6 C.F.R. § 139.35(c), on the public sidewalks surrounding a federal building in Eugene, Oregon. (Opinion and order.) The suit arises from arrests and threats of arrest under a newly expanded noise rule outside an ICE detention facility in Eugene, where agents confronted two protesters who had used megaphones and yelled. (NYT.)
Nov. 3 - The Seventh Circuit on Friday granted the Trump administration’s petition for a writ of mandamus and vacated a district court order requiring U.S. Border Patrol Chief Gregory Bovino to provide daily in-person compliance reports on federal agents’ use of force in Chicago. (Order.)
Oct. 30 - The Seventh Circuit on Wednesday granted an administrative stay pending consideration of the government’s mandamus petition, temporarily suspending Judge Sara Ellis’s (N.D. Ill.) order directing U.S. Border Patrol Chief Gregory Bovino to file daily compliance reports on federal agents’ use of force in Chicago. (Order.) See yesterday’s Roundup for background.
Oct. 29 - Judge Sarah Ellis (N.D.Ill.) on Tuesday ordered the U.S. Border Patrol commander to provide daily updates on how federal agents in Chicago are complying with restrictions she placed on their use of force. (WSJ.)
Oct. 17 - Judge Sarah Ellis (N.D. Ill.) modified the temporary restraining order she issued last week that enjoined federal agents engaged in “Operation Midway Blitz” from engaging in certain actions, including using riot control weapons on members of the press and tear gas unless there is an immediate threat of serious bodily injury. The amendment orders agents to wear and use body-worn-cameras while interacting with protesters. (Minute Entry.) (WSJ.)
Oct. 10 - Judge Sara L. Ellis (N.D. Ill.) issued a temporary restraining order on Thursday prohibiting federal law enforcement in the Chicago area from using certain tactics—including arrests, orders of dispersal, and use of riot control weapons without legal justification—against journalists and protestors. Plaintiffs had alleged that federal authorities targeted journalists and protestors with excessive force in violation of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act and their First and Fourth Amendment rights. (Temporary Restraining Order.) (Statement.)
Oct. 7 - A coalition of journalists, and protesters sued the federal government on Monday, alleging that federal agents used force to interfere with their First Amendment rights. (Complaint.) The plaintiffs filed an emergency motion for a temporary restraining order. (Emergency Motion for TRO.) (Proposed TRO.)
Oct. 2 - Judge William G. Young (D. Mass.) on Tuesday held that the Trump administration targeted noncitizen pro-Palestinian protesters with deportation on account of their political speech in violation of the First Amendment. In a 161-page opinion, the judge stated that the administration impermissibly engaged in viewpoint discrimination in its enforcement of immigration laws. The judge also held that the administration’s policy was arbitrary and capricious in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). (Opinion.)

Alien Enemies Act

Dec. 16 - Twenty-four states on Monday urged the Fifth Circuit to deny a motion for an injunction blocking the Trump administration’s use of the Alien Enemies Act to detain and deport noncitizens without due process. (Amicus curiae brief.) After initially granting the injunction in September, the court has agreed to rehear the case en banc in January. See a previous Roundup for the September opinion.
Dec. 15 - A three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit on Friday issued an administrative stay temporarily blocking Judge Boasberg from holding hearings on whether Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and others should be found in criminal contempt of court for deporting two planeloads of alleged Venezuelan gang members to a prison in El Salvador in violation of the court’s order. (Order.) (Government’s Emergency Petition.) (Bloomberg.)
Dec. 11 - The Justice Department asked Judge James Boasberg (D.D.C.) to reconsider his order requiring two DOJ attorneys to testify in the court’s criminal-contempt inquiry into the Mar. 15 detainee transfers. The DOJ argued that the court cannot conduct its own factual investigation into potential contempt and, alternatively, sought a protective order limiting any questioning and barring disclosure of privileged information. (Motion.)
Dec. 9 - Judge James Boasberg (D.D.C.) requested Erez Reuveni and Drew Ensign to appear for questioning as witnesses in his contempt inquiry against the Trump administration for its handling of Alien Enemies Act-based deportation flights to El Salvador. (Order.) (Politico.) For background, see a previous Roundup.
Dec. 1 - Judge James Boasberg (D.D.C.) on Friday ordered the Trump administration to “submit declarations from all individuals involved in the decision not to halt the transfer of class members out of U.S. physical custody on March 15 and 16, 2025,” including a description of their roles in the decision, by Dec. 5. (Order.) (AP.)
Nov. 26 - In Judge James Boasberg’s (D.D.C) contempt inquiry regarding the administration’s handling of Alien Enemies Act-based deportation flights to El Salvador, the Justice Department disclosed that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was responsible for “direct[ing]” the transfer of AEA detainees to Salvadoran custody after Judge Boasberg ordered the flights “to be returned to the United States.” (Politico.) (Filing.) As part of the inquiry, Judge Boasberg also issued an order requesting “proposals” for how the inquiry should proceed, “including names of possible witnesses.” Among the “potential witnesses” named by the lawyers representing the plaintiffs include now-Judge Emil Bove, as well as other senior DOJ officials. (Law Dork.)
Nov. 20 - Judge James Boasberg (D.D.C.) said Wednesday that he will resume contempt proceedings over alleged violations of his temporary restraining order in the Alien Enemies Act deportation case, pointing to last week’s D.C. Circuit order as authorizing him to proceed. (Politico.)
Nov. 17 - The D.C. Circuit on Friday denied rehearing en banc of a panel decision granting mandamus relief, leaving in place the ruling that set aside Judge James Boasberg (D.D.C.)’s probable-cause finding in the contempt proceedings over alleged violations of his temporary restraining order in the Alien Enemies Act deportation case. (Order.)
Oct. 1 - The Fifth Circuit granted on Tuesday the government’s petition to rehear en banc a case challenging President Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act to deport suspected members of a Venezuelan gang. (Order.) (NYT.) In a 2-1 decision last month, a Fifth Circuit panel issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting the Trump administration from using the Alien Enemies Act as the basis of deportations. (Order.)

Refugee admissions

Dec. 11 - Judge Jamal Whitehead (W.D. Wash.) denied the government’s motion to stay discovery pending a full opinion from the Ninth Circuit in litigation challenging President Trump’s Executive Order 14163, “Realigning the United States Refugee Admissions Program.” Judge Whitehead wrote that delaying discovery would harm the plaintiffs—a group of refugees and related organizations—and that the Ninth Circuit’s partial stay of the preliminary injunction does not resolve the merits. (Order.)

Temporary Protected Status

Dec. 11 - Judge Edward Chen (N.D. Ca.) granted the National TPS Alliance’s motion for declaratory relief, ruling that the Trump administration’s vacatur of Venezuela’s Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation and termination of the designation in February 2025 were unlawful. Judge Chen stayed the order for two weeks to allow the government to seek relief from the Ninth Circuit. (Order.)

Visas

Dec. 15 - The attorneys general of 20 states on Friday sued the Trump administration over its decision to impose a $100,000 fee on H-1B visas. (Complaint.) (NYT.)
Dec. 11 - Customs and Border Protection has proposed a new rule that would require foreign visitors using the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) to submit five years of social-media history as part of the ESTA process. Additional proposed data fields include past business emails and family contacts. (WSJ.)
Dec. 11 - The Trump administration on Wednesday launched applications for a new “gold card” visa, which grants expedited U.S. permanent residency to individuals who pay a $15,000 processing fee and a $1 million “gift” after vetting. (Website.) (NYT.)
Oct. 21 - U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services on Monday issued new guidance clarifying that only new H-1B visa applicants from outside the country will be required to pay the $100,000 application fee. (WSJ.)
Oct. 17 - The U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Thursday sued the Trump administration, asking the D.C. District Court to enjoin the presidential proclamation imposing a $100,000 fee on all new H-1B applications and to hold unlawful and set aside any agency action implementing the proclamation. (Complaint.) (WSJ.)
Oct. 6 - A broad coalition of groups sued the Trump administration on Friday challenging President Trump’s executive order imposing a fee of $100,000 on H1-B visa applications, alleging that the order is not authorized by the Immigration and Nationality Act and violates the Administrative Procedure Act. (Complaint.) (AP.)

Citizenship Order

Oct. 7 - The First Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed district court preliminary injunctions blocking President Trump’s Citizenship Order and related directives from taking effect. (Opinion.)