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Trump Administration Immigration Updates

This Resource Page reports on the Trump Administration’s series of executive orders and related government agency directives related to Immigration laws. These actions reflect the Administration’s plans to reshape and strictly enforce U.S. immigration laws, essentially redefining the country’s approach to U.S. immigration – including longstanding constitutional protections. The Administration is reviving President Trump’s aggressive stance on U.S. immigration conveyed during his first term in office.

Below are summary highlights for key areas of the Trump Administration’s actions on immigration, along with recommended actions for U.S. employers and noncitizens. This page will be updated as the Trump Administration and government agencies release additional orders and also feature notable judicial challenges to the actions.

Key Recommendations:
Travel Restrictions and Visa Processing

President Trump signed executive orders for the following policies:

  • January 20, 2025: President Trump has directed the relevant agencies, to “vet and screen to the maximum degree possible all aliens who intend to be admitted, enter, or are already inside the United States, particularly those aliens coming from regions or nations with identified security risks.”
    • As part of this directive, such agency heads must provide President Trump a report, within 60 days, identifying countries that may warrant “partial or full suspension on the admission of nationals from those countries,” thereby insinuating once again the potential implementation of travel bans for multiple countries. Agency heads are also directed to evaluate the adequacy of programs designed to ensure the proper assimilation of lawful immigrants into the U.S.
  • Effective January 27, 2025, the entry of refugees to the U.S. under the U.S. Refugee Admission Program (USRAP) has been suspended until a finding has been made that entry of refugees would be in the U.S. national interest. Department of State (DOS) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) may still admit refugees on a case-by-case basis.

LEGALcurrents:

General Recommendations

For current recommendations on traveling outside the U.S. based on your visa status, see our General Recommendations for International Travel page.

Trump Administration Executive Actions:

  • March 25, 2025: Department of Homeland Security announces in the Federal Register that it is revoking humanitarian parole granted under the Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan parole program, known as the CHNV program effective April 24, 2025. This means that the authorization to remain in the United States based on this parole and any associated employment authorization is set to expire April 24, 2025.
  • February 20, 2025: Department of Homeland Security reduced designation of Haiti for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to 12 months. TPS and employment authorization expire August 3, 2025.
  • February 1, 2025:  Department of Homeland Security terminated the 2023 designation of Venezuela for Temporary Protected Status (TPS). TPS and related benefits, including employment authorization, associated with this designation will end on April 7, 2025. No new documents will be issued.
  • January 28, 2025: Department of Homeland Security vacated a previous extension of the designation of Venezuela for Temporary Protected Status.
  • January 20, 2025: Prioritize the prosecution and removal of illegal immigrants, by directing the Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security to take “all appropriate action” to identify, prosecute, and remove illegal entrants, individuals unlawfully present and those with final orders of removal; in this connection, the use of expedited removal without hearing is expended by federal notice to once again cover noncitizens apprehended within 100 miles of the land border who entered the U.S. within the past 2 years.
  • January 20, 2025: Establish and construct detention facilities to detain removable noncitizens, by directing the Secretary of Homeland Security to take “all appropriate action” to construct, operate, control, or use facilities to detain removable aliens.
  • January 20, 2025: Implement a registration process for undocumented noncitizens, including imposition of fines and penalties for non-compliance by the undocumented individuals and those who facilitate the presence of undocumented individuals.
  • January 20, 2025: Ensure employment authorization is not provided to unauthorized noncitizens, by directing that “all appropriate action” be taken for the lawful provision of employment authorization to noncitizens, and therefore compliance of U.S. immigration laws by U.S. employers.
  • January 20, 2025: Withhold federal funds from “sanctuary” jurisdictions, i.e., localities which limit or otherwise interfere with active enforcement of U.S. immigration laws will not receive federal funding.
  • January 20, 2025: Withhold federal funds to non-governmental organizations “supporting or providing services, either directly or indirectly, to removable or illegal aliens,” to help ensure such organizations “do not promote or facilitate violations of our immigration laws.”
  • January 20, 2025: Reestablish the VOICE office, the Office of Victims of Immigrant Crimes that focuses on and brings to the public eye crimes committed by removable noncitizens.
  • January 20, 2025: Evaluate Humanitarian Parole Programs and Temporary Protected Status designations to determine whether they are sufficiently limited in scope or remain appropriate.

Updated Policy Guidance and New Developments:

  • April 14, 2025: A federal judge in Massachusetts ordered the stay of the revocation of the CHNV (Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan) parole program published March 25, 2025. This means that the parole and associated employment authorization will not be limited to April 24, 2025 pending further court action.
  • March 31, 2025: A federal Judge in California ordered the postponement of Department of Homeland Security’s action to terminate and vacate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation for Venezuela. The effect of this order is to restore TPS benefits including work authorization to the originally issued expiration dates.
  • February 24, 2025: A federal Judge in Maryland issued a Temporary Restraining Order, ordering the Department of Homeland Security to re-institute the 2021 enforcement policy as it pertains to the places of worship represented by the plaintiffs. The covered groups are several Quaker communities, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, and the Sikh Temple Sacramento. This means immigration enforcement activities at places of worship represented by the plaintiffs will be limited while the lawsuit is ongoing. This does not apply to other organizations or places of worship. Several other lawsuits filed by other groups remain pending. 
  • February 19, 2025: News reports that an internal memo issued by the Trump Administration has enacted an indefinite pause on all immigration applications filed by or on behalf of individuals paroled into the United States under the Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans (CHNV), Uniting for Ukraine (U4U), and Family Reunification parole programs. It is reported that this memo was issued February 14, 2025 citing concerns of fraud, national security and public safety as justification for the pause. This pause impacts all immigration applications including any applications unrelated to the parole programs themselves, including green card applications based on family sponsorship, Temporary Protected Status (TPS), or applications for permission to work.
  • January 20, 2025: ICE released interim guidance rescinding the October 27, 2021 policy memo from Secretary Mayorkas which limited immigration enforcement in “protected areas,” such as hospitals, churches, and schools. This rescission of the 2021 policy memo means that there are no longer any specific protected areas, thereby enhancing the scope of immigration enforcement activities.

LEGALcurrents: 

President Trump signed executive orders for the following policies:

  • January 20, 2025: President Trump declared an invasion at the southern border by illegal immigrants. This declaration triggers executive branch powers which could allow President Trump to deploy military resources to civil immigration enforcement, including construction of border barriers, aerial surveillance, and apprehension and detention of individuals, to repel or remove noncitizens seeking to enter the U.S. illegally.
  • January 20, 2025: President Trump has granted the Secretary of Defense and Homeland Security broad authority to deploy Armed Forces; construct a physical wall and other barriers; reinstitute the Migrant Protection Protocols (i.e., a process requiring individuals to wait in Mexico for their hearings); terminate humanitarian parole programs (for now specifically Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela); and end the “catch-and-release” practice for individuals awaiting their court hearings.

President Trump signed executive orders for the following policies:

  • February 5, 2025: This order is currently not in effect. The implementation has been blocked by multiple federal courts while litigation is ongoing.   

  • January 20, 2025: Limit Birthright Citizenship: The Fourteenth Amendment states: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”  President Trump seeks to deny automatic U.S. citizenship to all individuals born in the U.S. if (1) the individual’s mother was unlawfully present in the U.S. and the father was not a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth, or (2) when that person’s mother was lawfully present in the U.S. but in temporary status and the father was not a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth. In other words, the intent of this order is to grant automatic U.S. citizenship only to individuals born in the U.S. whose mother or father is a lawful permanent resident or U.S. citizen.
  • January 20, 2025: Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government: This order directs federal agencies to recognize and reflect in its processes and on federal documents only two sexes – male or female. Documents include passports, Global Entry cards, visa stamps and presumably also employment authorization cards and reentry permits.
For U.S. Employers:
  • Ensure compliance with immigration recordkeeping requirements, including Forms I-9 and H-1B public inspection files. The Trump Administration has signaled an intention to ramp up enforcement efforts for these programs, and we are already hearing reports of employer site visits and audits.
  • Encourage noncitizen employees, including lawful permanent residents and temporary visa holders, to remain in the U.S. until we have more information on anticipated travel bans. The Trump Administration is actively working on new travel restrictions that should take effect in the coming months.
  • Review the current immigration status of temporary workers and consider H-1B visa lottery filings or other options for employees who hold temporary or less stable immigration status (e.g., Humanitarian Parole, DACA, TPS).
  • Consult with experienced immigration attorneys to assess employee status and develop strategies to align with these rapid policy changes. With the higher scrutiny placed on immigration applications, as well as the reallocation of government resources from immigration adjudication to enforcement, lengthier processing times are expected across the board. Advance planning is critical.
  • Have a plan for ICE site visits. It is important that employers and businesses are prepared for a visit from ICE, and have a specific plan for how to respond if this occurs.

LEGALcurrents:

  • Limit international travel in light of anticipated travel restrictions or bans. Plan to remain in the U.S. until there is clarity around specific travel restrictions or bans.
  • Carry immigration status documents with you at all times (e.g., green card, Form I-797 approval/receipt notices, I-94 record, passport with visa stamp, employment authorization card and/or advance parole).
  • Consult with experienced immigration attorneys and your employer to determine if there are other viable pathways to safeguard your current status, particularly for individuals in temporary or less stable status (e.g., Humanitarian Parole, DACA, TPS). 

LEGALcurrents:

Resources and Best Practices:
Media Coverage:
Additional Information:

Lawsuits to combat executive action taken by President Trump since he took office on January 20, 2025 are already in motion or expected. It is recommended that U.S. employers and noncitizens stay informed about these and future actions and seek legal counsel to ensure ongoing understanding of, and compliance with, U.S. immigration laws in light of the rapid changes directed by the Trump Administration.

Harter Secrest & Emery LLP will continue to monitor changes in U.S. immigration law and policies and will provide updates as appropriate. Please contact any member of the Immigration practice group with questions.

Information is not necessarily updated in real-time. Please consult an HSE Immigration Attorney for the most current information and recommendations.