A US court has overturned a Trump administration policy that blocked immigrant visa issuance to nationals of 75 countries, reopening a potential route to permanent residence for thousands of applicants, including Kenyans and nationals of 25 other African states.
US District Judge Jeannette Vargas ruled in Manhattan on Friday that Secretary of State Marco Rubio had exceeded his statutory authority by imposing a blanket nationality-based restriction.
The policy, introduced on January 21, barred US consular officers from issuing immigrant visas to nationals of the designated countries while Washington reviewed screening rules. Applicants could submit documents and attend interviews, but visas could not be issued even where eligibility requirements had been met.
The affected African countries were Algeria, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Libya, Morocco, Nigeria, Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia and Uganda.
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Vargas found the policy inconsistent with the Immigration and Nationality Act, which assigns consular officers responsibility for assessing individual applications under criteria set by Congress.
“The policy, which categorically prohibits the issuance of immigrant visas based upon the nationality of the applicant, represents a direct abrogation of this statutory scheme,” the judge wrote.
The lawsuit was brought by the Catholic Legal Immigration Network and African Communities Together, together with 11 affected applicants. Six were US residents or citizens sponsoring relatives, while five had employment-based petitions.
African Communities Together welcomed the ruling as a victory for families separated by the suspension.
The decision, however, does not amount to an automatic visa approval. Applicants must still meet financial, medical, security and documentation requirements, while consular officers retain authority to reject applicants deemed likely to become a “public charge”.
The ruling does not override separate Trump administration entry and visa restrictions covering 39 countries. Some African countries affected by Friday’s judgment remain subject to those restrictions.
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