The Trump administration has filed a lawsuit over a freeze on immigrant visa processing

A group of civil rights organizations sued the State Department on Monday (February 2, 2026) over a recent pause in the processing of immigrant visas for citizens of 75 countries, arguing that the policy “overturns decades of settled immigration law.”

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Manhattan, asks a judge to grant a court order blocking the policy, which went into effect on January 21.

The complaint asserts that the State Department’s policy is “based on the unsupported and patently false claim that nationals of base countries immigrate to the United States to improperly rely on cash welfare and become ‘public charges.’

“A visa is not a privilege,” State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said in a statement, adding that the visa policy prevents billions of dollars in waste, fraud and abuse.

“The Department is pausing the issuance to evaluate and enhance screening and vetting procedures — but we will not stop fighting for American citizens first,” said Mr. Pigott said.

The lawsuit was brought by the National Immigration Law Center and other groups on behalf of a wide range of plaintiffs, including US citizens who say they have been separated from family members because of the policy.

Another plaintiff is a Colombian endocrinologist who was approved for an employment-based visa but cannot receive it because Colombia is one of the countries subject to the policy.

The moratorium affected applicants from Latin American countries including Brazil, Colombia and Uruguay, Balkan countries such as Bosnia and Albania, South Asian countries such as Pakistan and Bangladesh, and many countries in Africa, the Middle East and the Caribbean.

The State Department policy does not affect US visitor visas, given that the United States is hosting the 2026 World Cup and 2028 Olympics.

A State Department cable describes the conduct and has seen Reuters The department said it was undergoing a “thorough review” of all policies, regulations and guidance to ensure a “higher level of screening and vetting” for all US visa applicants.

A cable sent to U.S. missions said applicants from 75 affected countries “are at greater risk of resorting to public fees and local, state and federal government resources in the United States.”