Federal Court Limits USCIS Adjudication Holds, Though New Biometrics Process May Still Cause Delays

A federal judge in Massachusetts has ruled that USCIS cannot indefinitely hold adjudication of immigration benefits requested by individuals from 39 countries identified in recent travel bans. The judge also found that the agency’s guidance to treat citizenship from these 39 countries as a “significant negative factor” when deciding their applications was unlawful. A copy of the decision is available here.

The ruling addresses the USCIS's policy in effect since December 2025 that paused the adjudication of applications for adjustment of status, naturalization, and work authorization by individuals from 39 countries the Trump administration has found to lack adequate mechanisms for security vetting and identity verification.

While the immediate impact of the court’s decision is limited to the 200 individuals who filed this case, the court’s ruling sends a broader signal about the lawfulness of the agency’s adjudication hold and the agency’s guidance on treating citizenship from these 39 countries as a "significant negative factor." The court’s decision will likely influence how other courts will rule on this issue as more individuals sue the agency.

At the center of the court’s decision is a clear principle: while USCIS has discretion to approve or deny an application, it must reach a decision within a reasonable period of time. The court found that open-ended adjudication holds, without a defined timeline, are contrary to the legal frameworks that govern how the various applications must be handled. The court also found that USCIS policy treating an applicant’s country of birth as a “significant negative factor” in adjustment of status and work authorization decisions is likely unlawful, as it conflicts with the long-standing prohibition on nationality-based discrimination in the issuance of immigrant visas, although such nationality based distinctions may be permissible in the context of asylum and naturalization applications.

Unfortunately, the court’s decision does not address every source of delay currently impacting USCIS adjudications. Following the assassination attempt on President Trump on April 25, 2026, media reports indicate that USCIS has started resubmitting previously captured biometrics to the FBI for many pending cases. This separate re-vetting process is expected to cause further delays for certain applications, independent of the court’s order.

We will continue to monitor the agency's response to the legal challenges to its adjudications hold policy as well as their implementation of enhanced security checks, and will share updates as more information becomes available.

This alert is for informational purposes only. Please contact us if you would like to discuss this development further.