by Emmitt Barry, with reporting from Washington D.C. Bureau Staff
(Worthy News) – The Trump administration on Tuesday formally suspended all immigration applications–from asylum to green cards to citizenship–for nationals of 19 countries deemed “high-risk,” launching the most sweeping immigration pause since President Trump took office.
The move follows last week’s deadly shooting near the White House, where an Afghan national–who previously worked with U.S. intelligence and military forces–ambushed two West Virginia National Guard soldiers, killing one and critically injuring the other. The memo repeatedly cites the attack as the clearest example of “screening and vetting failures” since 2021.
USCIS’s four-page directive halts all pending asylum claims nationwide, regardless of country of origin, and freezes every immigration benefit request from Afghanistan, Burma (Myanmar), Burundi, Chad, Cuba, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, and Yemen. Officials noted the list may expand to 30 countries.
The order also requires a complete re-review of all immigrants from the listed nations who entered the U.S. on or after Jan. 20, 2021–potentially including new interviews and re-interviews–before any benefits can be approved.
“USCIS plays an instrumental role in preventing terrorists from seeking safe haven in the United States,” the memo states. “The burden of processing delays is necessary and appropriate when weighed against the agency’s obligation to preserve national security.”
The freeze follows a partial travel ban implemented in June on similar countries and comes amid growing criticism of Afghan vetting procedures. Border czar Tom Homan called the prior screening process “the biggest national security failure in the history of the nation.”
Immigration attorneys say the impact is already evident, with naturalization interviews, oath ceremonies, and green-card appointments abruptly canceled this week for nationals of affected countries.
Speaking aboard Air Force One, President Trump said the pause may last “indefinitely,” arguing the U.S. immigration system must recover from years of “dangerous admissions.”
“We don’t want those people,” he said. “We have enough problems. And we don’t need people from very crime-ridden third-world countries coming in and telling us what to do.”
USCIS said its comprehensive review will determine the next steps–and whether more countries are added to the list.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
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