Legal Updates

On December 2, 2025, USCIS issued a Policy Memo that pauses final adjudication of all affirmative asylum applications. The hold applies to all applicants who filed or plan to file Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal, regardless of the applicant's immigration status, nationality, or country of origin. Although applicants can still file applications to USCIS, no asylum decisions will be issued while the pause is in effect. It is not yet clear whether USCIS will continue to conduct asylum interviews or process work permits for individuals with pending asylum applications. Note that this pause does not affect defensive asylum applications filed in immigration court by individuals who are already in removal proceedings. Read more

On December 23, 2025, the State Department announced that it has stopped issuing new Diversity Immigrant Visas to previous winners of the Diversity Lottery. This follows the December 18th announcement by the Department of Homeland Security directing USCIS to stop processing applications by previous Diversity Lottery winners for adjustment of status to permanent residence. While existing visas that have already been issued to previous Diversity Lottery winners should not be affected, it is not clear whether the lottery will be opened to new registrants, since the State Department still has not announced the official registration dates for the 2027 Diversity Lottery. Read more

On Oct. 16, 2025, DHS implemented a new $1,000 fee for grants of parole and re/parole. The new fee applies when an individual is either 1) physically paroled into the United States, unless they qualify for an exception, or 2) is already present in the United States and receives a notice from USCIS that their re-parole will be approved. The $1,000 parole grant fee is due in addition to the $580 Form I-131 online filing fee. Note that individuals do not need to pay the additional $1,000 fee when they file Form I-131. Only those who are notified by USCIS that their request will be approved must pay the additional $1,000 parole grant fee. Read more

In June 2025, USCIS resumed processing re-parole and other applications filed by parolees. Although Ukrainians are no longer able to use the streamlined re-parole process that was previously available, they can still apply for re-parole by filing Form I-131 online or by mail and submitting all the required documentation to USCIS. Their re-parole requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis after examining their individual circumstances to determine if another grant of parole is warranted for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public interest. Learn more about re-parole, who is eligible, how to apply, how to renew employment authorization, and recommendations for filing a strong application. Read more

The Diversity Visa (DV) Lottery for 2027 is scheduled to open in the Fall of 2025. Through this program, the U.S. Department of State allocates up to 55,000 immigrant visas annually to individuals who may not have any other options for permanent immigration. Unlike family-based immigrant visas and most employment-based immigrant visas that require a U.S. sponsor, the diversity visa lottery allows individuals to self-sponsor themselves for a green card. Learn more about the diversity visa lottery, eligibility criteria, important dates, and how to apply in our article below. Read more

On June 9, 2025, USCIS issued a memo authorizing immigration officers to resume processing applications filed by parolees. This follows the federal District Court’s May 28th order directing DHS to lift the suspension that had been in effect since February 14. This means that USCIS has resumed processing applications from parolees for work permits, TPS, asylum, green cards, and other immigration benefits. Although the District Court's ruling is good news for Ukrainian parolees seeking more stable immigration statuses and employment authorization, parolees who filed applications in the past 5-10 months could still see long wait times due to major application backlogs. Additionally, re-parole requests and related work permits may not be approved for all applicants due to the White House's restrictions on humanitarian parole grants. Read more

Ukrainian nationals who currently hold TPS and wished to extend their TPS status through October 19, 2026 were required to re-register for TPS with USCIS. The 60-day re-registration window started January 17, 2025 and ended March 18, 2025. Ukrainians who did not re-register to extend their TPS status through October 19, 2026 if they can show good cause for why they are filing their re-registration late. Read more

Adjustment of Status is the process by which a noncitizen who is already in the United States can apply for Lawful Permanent Resident status (a Green Card) without having to leave the country. However, strict legal requirements limit the eligibility for this process for humanitarian parolees and other categories of applicants. Read more

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has suspended the processing of all immigration applications filed by individuals who entered on parole programs, including Ukrainians who entered on U4U. This affects applications filed by parolees for asylum, TPS, EADs, advance parole travel, adjustment of status, naturalization, and others. While USCIS officers may continue to work on cases already filed, they are not allowed to issue any decisions while the administrative pause is in effect. Parolees who planned to apply or recently applied for another lawful status through USCIS will not be able to obtain any approvals for the foreseeable future. Read more

On Monday, January 27, 2025, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it would stop accepting new applications for the Uniting for Ukraine (U4U) program pending the Trump Administration's review of all humanitarian parole programs. This means that no new sponsor applications (Form I-134a) for Ukrainians will be processed until further notice, and no new travel authorizations will be issued to Ukrainian beneficiaries. For now, those who already arrived on Uniting for Ukraine may remain in the U.S. for as long as their parole period is valid. Read more