Immigration: Increased Vetting and Restrictions on Entry of Certain Foreign Nationals

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued new guidance on Nov. 27, 2025, allowing for negative, country-specific factors to be considered when foreign nationals from 19 countries are vetted for any U.S. immigration-related benefit (the Nov. 27 Guidance). The guidance, titled "Impact of INA 212(f) on USCIS' Adjudication of Discretionary Benefits," was issued to further strengthen the prior Presidential Proclamation 10949 (titled "Restricting the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats") and its impact on immigration-based adjudications by the USCIS. That proclamation imposed restrictions on entering the U.S. for foreign nationals from those 19 countries (the June 4 Proclamation).

Subsequently, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security issued a Dec. 2, 2025, Policy Memorandum titled "Hold and Review of all Pending Asylum Applications and all USCIS Benefit Applications Filed by Aliens from High-Risk Countries," and the U.S. Department of State issued the H-1B/H-4 Enhanced Vetting Guidance for H-1B and H-4 visa applicants on Dec. 3, 2025.

Background

The U.S. president is authorized by Section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) by proclamation to suspend the entry of all foreign nationals or any class of foreign nationals or impose on the entry of foreign nationals any restrictions he may deem appropriate. On June 4, 2025, the Trump Administration issued the June 4 Proclamation referenced above to suspend the entry or admission of foreign nationals from the following 19 countries, which have been deemed high-risk countries by the administration: Afghanistan, Burma, Burundi, Chad, Republic of Congo, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Sierra Leona, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Venezuela and Yemen. With certain exceptions, the June 4 Proclamation applies to foreign nationals who were outside of the U.S. and did not have a valid visa on or after June 9, 2025.

New Guidance and Policy Memorandum

In response to the Nov. 26, 2025, shooting of two National Guard service members by a national of Afghanistan in Washington, D.C., the USCIS issued the Nov. 27 Guidance allowing for negative, country-specific factors to be considered when vetting foreign nationals from the above-listed 19 countries considered high-risk by the Trump Administration.

Subsequently, the Dec. 2 Policy Memorandum was issued directing USCIS to 1) suspend all Forms I-589 (Applications for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal), regardless of the foreign national applicant's country of nationality, pending a comprehensive review, 2) suspend pending benefit requests for foreign nationals from countries listed in the June 4 Proclamation and 3) conduct a comprehensive rereview of approved benefit requests for foreign nationals from the high-risk countries listed in the June 4 Proclamation who entered the U.S. on or after Jan. 20, 2021.

Regarding the above, the following has been clarified:

• The term "benefit request" referenced in Point 2 above does not include USCIS screening activities, including credible fear, reasonable fear, safe third country, third country removal and threshold screenings under the Asylum Cooperative Agreements.
• The 19 high-risk countries apply to individuals who list one of the designated countries as their country of birth or country of citizenship.
• The pending benefit requests referenced in Point 2 above include the following: Form I-485 (Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status), Form I-90 (Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card (Green Card)), Form N-470 (Application to Preserve Residence for Naturalization Purposes), Form I-751 (Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence) and Form I-131 (Application for Travel Documents, Parole Documents and Arrival/Departure Records).

To Whom Do the New Guidance and Policy Memorandum Apply?

The Nov. 27 Guidance applies to nationals from the 19 listed countries in the June 4 Proclamation who are applying for any discretionary immigration-based benefit in the U.S. on or after Nov. 27, 2025, including, but not limited to, certain adjustment of status applications (i.e., green card applications), extensions of nonimmigrant stay (i.e., applying to extend a nonimmigrant visa status while in the U.S.) and change of nonimmigrant status (i.e., applying to change a nonimmigrant visa status from one visa to a different visa).

The Dec. 2 Policy Memorandum applies to foreign nationals who list one of the designated 19 high-risk countries as their country of birth or country of citizenship and have an immigration benefit application pending.

Details of the New Guidance and Policy Memorandum

The Nov. 27 Guidance "includes consideration of country-specific factors such as a country's ability to issue secure identity documents" and "will allow USCIS officers to more meaningfully assess whether an alien of a threat to public safety and national security."

The Dec. 2 Policy Memorandum mandates that all foreign nationals meeting the above criteria undergo a "thorough re-review process, including a potential interview and, if necessary, a re-interview to fully assess all national security and public safety threats along with any other related grounds of inadmissibility or ineligibility." USCIS will conduct an "individualized, case-by-case review and assessment … of all relevant information and facts … and will conduct a comprehensive review of all relevant policies, procedures, and operational guidance for compliance, accuracy, and needed improvements during this time." Additionally, this policy memorandum specifies that "USCIS may, when appropriate, extend this review and re-interview process to aliens who entered the United States outside this timeframe."

What Is the Enhanced H-1B and H-4 Vetting?

USCIS announced on Dec. 3, 2025, that as of Dec. 15, 2025, the State Department will expand the requirement that a review of social media be conducted for all H-1B applicants and their H-4 dependents, similar to that already required for F and M student visa applicants and J-1 exchange visitor visa applicants. To facilitate this enhanced vetting requirement, all applications for H-1B and H-4 visas are advised to adjust the privacy setting on all their social media profiles to "public."

How Holland & Knight Can Assist

Holland & Knight's immigration lawyers are skilled at assisting clients in understanding immigration rules and regulations, not only in how the laws are written, but also how they are interpreted and enforced. If you have any questions about the new immigration changes and regulations or current immigration landscape, please contact the author or another member of Holland & Knight's Immigration, Nationality and Consular Team.

Information contained in this alert is for the general education and knowledge of our readers. It is not designed to be, and should not be used as, the sole source of information when analyzing and resolving a legal problem, and it should not be substituted for legal advice, which relies on a specific factual analysis. Moreover, the laws of each jurisdiction are different and are constantly changing. This information is not intended to create, and receipt of it does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. If you have specific questions regarding a particular fact situation, we urge you to consult the authors of this publication, your Holland & Knight representative or other competent legal counsel.