Trump pauses immigration from ‘Third World’ countries: What that means

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United States President Donald Trump has sharply escalated his crackdown connected migration with an announcement of a “permanent pause” connected migration from “all Third World Countries” precocious connected Thursday.

The president’s remarks came a time aft two National Guard members were shot – 1 of whom has since died from her injuries – successful Washington, DC, connected Wednesday. An Afghan nationalist has been named arsenic the superior suspect.

What has the Trump medication said?

After Rahmanaullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national, was arrested and named arsenic the fishy successful the shooting of the National Guard members connected Wednesday, Trump called the shooting “an enactment of terror”.

In an code to the media connected Wednesday night, helium said: “We indispensable present re-examine each azygous alien who has entered our state from Afghanistan nether Biden.”

Early connected Thursday, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced an indefinite contiguous suspension “of each migration requests relating to Afghan nationals”.

Effective immediately, processing of each migration requests relating to Afghan nationals is stopped indefinitely pending further reappraisal of information and vetting protocols.

The extortion and information of our homeland and of the American radical remains our singular absorption and…

— USCIS (@USCIS) November 27, 2025

USCIS Director Joseph Edlow past added connected X that, “at the direction” of the president, helium had ordered “a full-scale, rigorous re-examination of each greenish paper for each alien from each state of concern”.

“The extortion of this state and of the American radical remains paramount, and the American radical volition not carnivore the outgo of the anterior administration’s reckless resettlement policies,” Edlow said.

Edlow’s bureau told US media that the countries for which citizens with greenish cards volition beryllium reviewed would beryllium those connected the Trump administration’s June question prohibition list.

In June, to “protect the United States from overseas terrorists and different National information and nationalist information threats”, the Trump medication announced that overseas nationals from 19 countries would look a afloat question prohibition oregon partial restrictions.

Countries with a afloat prohibition successful spot are Afghanistan, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Myanmar, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Those with a partial prohibition successful spot – immoderate impermanent visas are inactive allowed – are Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.

At the absorption of @POTUS, I person directed a afloat scale, rigorous reexamination of each Green Card for each alien from each state of concern.

— USCIS Director Joseph B. Edlow (@USCISJoe) November 27, 2025

On Thursday night, Trump said connected Truth Social helium would present a “permanent pause” connected migration from each “Third World Countries”.

What does a ‘permanent pause’ successful migration mean?

It is unclear.

“In mean English, ‘permanent pause’ sounds final, but nether migration law, the word has nary defined meaning,” Abhishek Saxena, a New Delhi-based advocator practising successful the Supreme Court of India who besides handles planetary migration consultations, told Al Jazeera.

“Practically, ‘permanent pause’ typically means an open-ended regularisation with nary stated extremity date, but not a legally irreversible condition,” helium added.

According to the US Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), the president whitethorn suspend the introduction of immigrants for a fixed period, indefinitely oregon until the president modifies oregon lifts the proclamation. This can, however, beryllium challenged. “If immoderate indefinite intermission is violating laws passed by US Congress, past specified prohibition oregon intermission tin beryllium challenged successful a court,” said Saxena.

Roberto Forin, acting manager of the Geneva-based Mixed Migration Centre (MMC), said the Trump administration’s vagueness implicit who these policies use to and what helium means by “permanently pause” oregon “Third World” is intentional.

“Keeping it undefined allows the medication to indiscriminately intimidate migrant communities successful the US and astir the world, portion giving itself the prerogative to usage this prohibition arsenic different instrumentality successful its transactional attack to overseas policy,” Forin told Al Jazeera.

“I would expect the prohibition to disproportionately impact poorer countries, portion sparing those that tin connection thing successful exchange, specified arsenic earthy resources oregon different strategical benefits,” helium said.

“The nonsubjective of specified announcements is to awesome toughness, displacement the narrative, instil fearfulness and dehumanise migrants – careless of the applicable implementation and eventual ineligible outcomes,” helium added.

How volition radical from specified countries who are already surviving successful the US beryllium affected?

It is unclear however radical from those countries volition beryllium affected until the names of the countries are listed and the migration measurement is implemented.

However, an August study by the Washington, DC-based American Immigration Council concluded that radical from the 12 countries connected Trump’s June 2025 afloat question prohibition database volition “not beryllium capable to spot household members surviving abroad”.

“Under the June order, existing visas cannot beryllium revoked, but those who request to permission the United States and renew their visas aft they expire could beryllium subjected to the prohibition alternatively of being allowed to return,” the study said.

Saxena said a restrictive migration argumentation tin indirectly impact radical successful the US successful respective different ways arsenic well.

“Firstly, it volition pb to accrued scrutiny of pending applications. USCIS whitethorn taxable applications from nationals of the affected countries to added inheritance checks, longer information screening, oregon impermanent holds,” helium said.

“Secondly, past shows that erstwhile a state is placed nether heightened information review, [visa] processing times often increase,” helium noted.

“Lastly, though the authorities cannot revoke existing residency statuses arbitrarily, it whitethorn audit past migration filings for fraud, misrepresentation, information concerns, oregon ineligibility nether existing statutes,” helium added.

Saxena said Trump’s announcement that helium volition intermission migration from “Third World Countries” would besides apt forestall spouses, children, and parents who are overseas from entering the US until the proclamation is lifted.

“This creates long-distance separations, delays successful family-based migration petitions and interruption of household reunification programmes,” helium said.

“However, radical already wrong the US cannot beryllium separated from their families simply due to the fact that a state is listed successful a proclamation. Family-unity principles nether the Constitution and the INA use erstwhile a idiosyncratic is wrong US territory,” helium added.

What if you person a greenish card?

On Thursday, the Trump medication told journalists that it intends to re-examine each greenish cards held by radical from the countries connected the June 2025 question prohibition list. However, it is not wide however the process volition enactment oregon whether greenish cards could beryllium revoked oregon adjacent cancelled.

A greenish paper is simply a US migration papers which allows an migrant to permanently reside and enactment successful the country.

US migration judges person the powerfulness to revoke greenish cards and to deport radical from the state if determination are superior grounds, specified arsenic being recovered blameworthy of grievous crimes similar execution oregon rape.

The authorities tin besides deport an migrant connected these grounds, including if they see the idiosyncratic “a menace to nationalist information oregon if the idiosyncratic violates their visa”.

However, according to Saxena, the authorities “has nary ineligible authorization to revoke greenish cards without pursuing owed process. Any revocation indispensable travel strict statutory procedures and fulfill due-process requirements.”

Last year, the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) bureau detained pro-Palestine activistic Mahmoud Khalil connected the “basis of his speech” portion helium was protesting against Israel’s genocidal warfare connected Gaza astatine Columbia University. Khalil was a imperishable US nonmigratory astatine the time, but ICE accused him of omitting accusation connected his greenish paper application.

In September, a US migration justice ordered that Khalil should beryllium deported to Algeria oregon Syria, but this has not yet happened.

What different steps has Trump taken this year to restrict immigration?

Besides greenish paper re-examinations and announcing question bans connected citizens of immoderate circumstantial countries, Trump besides froze exile admissions soon aft helium resumed bureau successful January.

“The United States lacks the quality to sorb ample numbers of migrants, and successful particular, refugees, into its communities successful a mode that does not compromise the availability of resources for Americans, that protects their information and security, and that ensures the due assimilation of refugees,” the White House said successful a connection successful January.

Then, astatine the extremity of October, the Trump medication announced the lowest exile admittance headdress successful the country’s history, limiting introduction to conscionable 7,500 radical for the fiscal twelvemonth 2026.

On November 25, according to a memo seen by the Reuters quality agency, the Trump medication ordered a reappraisal of each refugees allowed into the state nether the erstwhile Joe Biden administration, and recommended that their imperishable residency applications beryllium paused.

According to the memo, which was reportedly signed by USCIS main Eldow, the presumption and applications of astir 233,000 refugees who entered the US betwixt January 20, 2021 and February 20, 2025, would beryllium reviewed. The memo cited Trump’s January bid connected freezing exile admissions owed to nationalist information arsenic a reason.

The US has besides chopped overseas assistance for refugees successful big countries.

The Trump medication has besides targeted skilled migrant workers successful an effort to support US citizens’ jobs. In September, it accrued the exertion interest for H-1B visas to $100,000 per application. The visa is utilized by companies successful the US hiring overseas workers.

In October, the US Chamber of Commerce filed a suit against the Trump medication for the visa exertion interest rise, claiming it could harm businesses. The lawsuit is pending successful the Washington, DC territory court.

What does this mean for refugees generally?

“Taken together, these measures, particularly if they trigger a ‘race to the bottom’ among governments, could person devastating consequences globally, including successful countries already ravaged by struggle and violence,” Forin said.

“We spot this happening successful Europe arsenic well, from the strategy the UK has tried to found to outsource asylum procedures to Rwanda, to the centres Italy tried to acceptable up successful Albania, and nary of these person worked, due to the fact that they were blocked by courts astatine each step.”

“Unfortunately, they person each contributed to the dehumanisation of refugees and migrants, depicting them simply arsenic a menace oregon a burden, alternatively than arsenic quality beings successful request of extortion oregon deserving of a accidental astatine a amended future,” Forin added.

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