Federal Courts Vacate USCIS Policy Pausing Immigration Benefits For Nationals Of 39 Travel Ban Countries And The $100,000 H-1B Fee

39 travel ban countries

Between December 2025 and January 2026, nationals of the 39 travel ban countries became subject to a series of USCIS policies that imposed holds on and re-reviews of immigration benefits – collectively referred to as the "pause on benefits." On June 5, 2026, in a landmark ruling, a U.S. District Court in Rhode Island declared these policies unlawful and vacated them in their entirety. Specifically, the court found that the global asylum hold policy, the benefits hold policy, the comprehensive re-review policy, and the country-specific factors policy each violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and ordered that all four policies be set aside.

As a result of the court's ruling, nationals of the 39 travel ban countries should no longer be subject to adjudication holds of pending applications or re-reviews of previously approved USCIS benefits. Additionally, country of nationality should no longer be weighed as a negative factor in discretionary USCIS adjudications. While this ruling represents a significant victory for affected individuals, the government may seek to appeal or obtain a stay of the decision.

Importantly, the court’s decision only pertains to USCIS benefits requests. It does not lift the State Department’s pause on immigrant visa issuance for applicants from 75 designated countries, nor the travel ban imposed on foreign nationals from 39 countries – both of which still remain in force.

$100,000 H-1B fee

Additionally, on June 8, 2026, a U.S. District Court in Massachusetts ruled that the $100,000 H-1B fee that was imposed by Presidential Proclamation in September 2025 constitutes an unlawful tax, and as a result vacated the Proclamation. The government may also challenge this decision, and we anticipate updated guidance from USCIS to follow. We will continue to monitor developments closely and provide updates as warranted.