9 months ago
Trump Administration Pauses Immigration from 19 High-Risk Countries
The Trump administration has paused immigration applications from 19 countries it considers high-risk.
This decision comes after an incident where an Afghan national shot two National Guard members in Washington.
The administration believes this step is necessary to prevent terrorists from entering the US.
However, critics argue that this move is a form of collective punishment and could have significant economic fallout.
The USCIS will review all immigrants from these countries who entered the US after January 20, 2021, and place holds on pending benefit requests.
Experts suggest that the US already has a comprehensive vetting process, and this additional screening is nebulous and ill-defined.
The Trump administration paused immigration applications from 19 high-risk countries, including Afghanistan, Myanmar, and Venezuela.
This decision follows an incident where an Afghan national shot two National Guard members in Washington.
The USCIS will conduct a comprehensive re-review of all immigrants from these countries who entered the US after January 20, 2021.
Pending this review, the US will place holds on pending benefit requests for immigrants from these countries.
Critics argue that this move is a form of collective punishment and could have significant economic fallout, potentially reducing the number of workers and lowering economic growth.
- Who
- US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) under the Trump administration
- What
- Paused immigration applications from 19 high-risk countries and placed holds on pending benefit requests
- Where
- United States
- When
- December 2, 2024
- Why
- Citing national security concerns and the need for comprehensive re-review of immigrants from high-risk countries
Key facts
- Countries Affected
- Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, Venezuela
- Date of Announcement
- December 2, 2024
- USCIS Action
- Paused all immigration applications and placed holds on pending benefit requests
- Review Period
- 90 days for prioritized list of immigrants
- Impacted Benefit Requests
- Forms I-485, I-90, N-470, I-751, I-131, among others
- Criticism
- Collective punishment, economically questionable, and expansion of nebulous screening
- Economic Impact
- Potential reduction of 6.8 million workers by 2028 and 15.7 million by 2035, lowering annual economic growth by almost one-third
Quotes
US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) memo
A memo issued by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services
“…the United States has seen what a lack of screening, vetting, and prioritizing expedient adjudications can do to the American people…”
indianexpress.com
“USCIS plays an instrumental role in preventing terrorists from seeking safe haven in the United States…”
indianexpress.com
Sameer Ashar
Clinical professor of law at the University of California at Irvine
“This sort of cross-checking of records, seeking information about past criminal behavior — that is all part of the very, very narrow path towards legal immigration status in the United States.”
indianexpress.com
“The DHS is basically built to vet any visa applicants or asylum seekers to make sure they’re law-abiding and that they’re going to be good residents in the United States.”
indianexpress.com
Donald Trump
US President
“Immigration Policy has eroded those gains and living conditions for many. I will permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the US system to fully recover… remove anyone who is not a net asset to the United States, or is incapable of loving our Country, end all Federal benefits and subsidies to noncitizens of our Country, denaturalize migrants who undermine domestic tranquility, and deport any Foreign National who is a public charge, security risk, or non-compatible with Western Civilization…”
indianexpress.com
Raqel Aldana
Immigration expert
“What is happening now is that the Trump administration is creating new grounds to say that you are not fit to come to the United States.”
indianexpress.com
