Judge presses feds on delay in processing diversity visa applications

The federal government said it sent an international cable Thursday instructing consuls to restart processing applications, after it canceled all September interviews.SAN JOSE, Calif. (CN) — A federal judge on Thursday questioned the federal government’s delay in restarting diversity visa application processing, after a court order blocked three policies that paused applications.On Aug. 28, Senior U.S. District Judge Edward Davila granted in part a preliminary injunction to temporarily reopen the processing of visa applications. He also granted in part class certification of subclasses for those whose diversity visas, either under an Immigration Services or the Department of State policy, were on indefinite hold.At Thursday’s hearing on an emergency motion to enforce Davila’s order, attorney Curtis Morrison, representing dozens of applicants, said the U.S. State Department sent cables to consular offices on “how to deflect and turn away plaintiffs and class members,” and said he heard from his clients that they were turned away from interviews in Paris and Kigali, Rwanda, on Thursday morning.“It is plaintiffs’ position that there have not been good faith efforts,” Morrison told the court, saying the department “made things worse” and cancelled all interviews for applicants in September. Morrison said it was concerning, because the fiscal year for processing applications ends at the end of September.Nag Young Chu, with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, said the cancellation of interviews had to do with a training initiative to provide for “adequate training” and was not directly related to Davila’s order.Chu explained a department cable was sent out Thursday morning to consuls with guidance on prioritizing the recently cancelled interviewees and that the policies blocking application processing are no longer in effect.Davila, a Barack Obama appointee, questioned why it took almost two weeks after the court order for the government to send a cable and restart interviews.“That seems like a binary to me, a switch up and down,” he said. “I don’t understand the disconnect from engaging again.”Chu said restarting the application processing was not binary and many internal discussions on how to adjudicate the pending applications need to take place. Additionally, he said, reconsideration by consular officials of applications that were denied solely due to department policies would require a manual search.Under the diversity immigrant visa program, the Department of State holds a lottery in which it randomly selects noncitizens from countries with historically low rates of U.S. immigration for the opportunity to apply for a green card. If an applicant is in the U.S. under a different visa at the time of selection, they must a submit form with Immigration Services to adjust their status to permanent resident.Selection to the program does not guarantee a visa, just the ability to apply for one. Generally, the Department of State selects up to 55,000 immigrants to start the application process for each fiscal year.In December 2025, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the State Department issued two policies that place indefinite holds on green card applications and adjustment of diversity visa status.And in February, the State Department issued a notice pausing visa approval from 75 countries, requiring consular officers to refuse all immigrant visa applicants until the agency develops new guidance for consular officers to assess if an applicant might become dependent on public assistance once in the U.S. The notice was issued with no date on lifting the pause.A class action was filed in June in Northern California federal court and names President Donald Trump, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Joesph Edlow, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche as defendants.Because of the possibility that the government will be unable to process thousands of applications by the end of the fiscal year, Davila asked for a briefing from both parties about what a remedy could be if the government fails to follow the court’s order in a timely manner.He said the recommendation to restart interviews in three to seven days may be a “herculean feat” but should be attempted. He asked both parties to attend status hearings three days a week until the end of September to keep the court informed on the government’s progress.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads