On May 28, 2025, a federal District Court in Massachusetts issued two rulings in the Svitlana Doe v. Noem case. This case was filed on February 28, 2025, and the lawsuit challenged both the large scale termination of parole status and the suspension of immigration processes for humanitarian parolees. One of the orders issued by the District Court directed the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to lift the pause it had put in place in February 2025 that suspended the processing of applications filed by humanitarian parolees.
The USCIS administrative pause on parolee applications that went into effect on February 14 prevented individuals who entered on Uniting for Ukraine (U4U) and other parole programs from obtaining decisions on work permits, Temporary Protected Status (TPS), asylum, green cards, and other immigration benefits. Not only did the administrative pause prevent new applications from being processed, it suspended final adjudication of previously filed applications that had been pending before the February directive went into effect. Moreover, interviews for asylum and adjustment of status were paused as a result.
The federal District Court ordered the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to resume processing of applications for individuals who entered the United States on humanitarian parole programs, including U4U. The court also certified a nationwide class to ensure that all impacted individuals meeting certain criteria are protected. Thus, humanitarian parolees inside the United States who do not have their own individual litigation pending against the Department of Homeland Security can benefit from the relief ordered by the court.
This means that Ukrainian humanitarian parolees and parolees from other countries can once again seek more stable immigration statuses for which they are eligible. This includes affirmative asylum, TPS, re-parole, adjustment of status to permanent residence, and other potential processes. It also allows parolees to apply to renew their Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) so they can continue working lawfully.
While the District Court’s ruling is certainly encouraging, it is important to note that Ukrainian parolees could still experience significant delays in obtaining decisions on immigration applications.
First, there is a strong chance that the government will appeal the District Court’s decision, as it did in other recent immigration cases. If this happens, the appeals court may or may not decide to hear the case. If an appeals court agrees to allow the government’s appeal to proceed, there is a chance that the appellate judge could overturn the District Court’s decision. There is also the possibility that the appeals court could uphold the District Court’s decision. If this occurs, the government may request review by the U.S. Supreme Court, as it did with a previous ruling issued by the District Court in the same case pertaining to termination of parole.
Second, although the District Court issued a definitive decision ordering the Department of Homeland Security to resume processing applications filed by parolees, it remains to be seen whether or not the government will comply and direct USCIS to lift the administrative pause. DHS/USCIS may or may not release an official statement informing the public of its plans with regard to adjudicating parolee applications. Thus, it may be difficult for applicants and attorneys to ascertain the agency’s directives until or unless they receive notices for specific applications filed.
In fact, the government has already taken steps to challenge the District Court’s ruling. Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on May 30, the Trump Administration asked that the District Court dismiss the May 28 decision. Among other arguments, the administration claims that sponsors of parolees have no standing to sue, denying the harm that termination of parole will have on them. The government also claims that the risk of removal for parolees is attenuated.
Third, even if USCIS resumes processing applications filed by parolees, it could take some time for parolees to receive approvals due to the massive backlog of applications pending with USCIS. Even before the USCIS administrative pause went into effect, wait times for numerous immigration applications were lengthy. Individuals who urgently need certain documents or decisions could try filing an expedite request with USCIS, though this does not guarantee that their applications will be processed quickly.
In the meantime, it is recommended that U4U parolees continue to file applications to USCIS in order to register their place in the queue, obtain certain protections and, in some cases, stop the accrual of unlawful presence.
We will continue to monitor the status of this case, the government’s responses, and related legal developments.