Following the shooting of two National Guard members in Washington DC, in November 2025, the Donald Trump administration announced a blanket ban on asylum cases as the DC shooter was an Afghan man who had been granted asylum in 2025. The administration enacted a pause on asylum cases overseen by the USCIS.
The shooter, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, was evacuated from Afghanistan in 2021, when the US withdrew its troops from the country.
CBS News reported that three months after the pause, the administration has now decided to lift the asylum adjudication pause for most cases except for those filed by nationals from countries that are on the travel ban list.
Which asylum cases are overseen by the USCIS
There are mainly two types of asylum processes in the US -- one is handled by the USCIS and the second one is handled by the immigration courts. The first type was the one that had a pause for the last few months. This is where people file their case with the USCIS voluntarily seeking asylum in the US. They have an interview with an asylum officer and if denied they are referred to the immigration court.
The second type is the one that's handled by the immigration court. This process is defensive as the person goes to the court to avoid deportation.
List of countries not exempt
Officials confirmed to CBS that the asylum freeze will remain in place for immigrants from 39 nations whose citizens face full or partial entry restrictions. The decision to lift the pause is from non-high-risk countries other than this list.
Afghanistan
Burkina Faso
Burma (Myanmar)
Chad
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Haiti
Iran
Laos
Libya
Mali
Niger
Palestinian Authority Issued or Endorsed Travel Documents
Republic of Congo
Sierra Leone
Somalia
South Sudan
Sudan
Syria
Yemen
Angola
Antigua and Barbuda
Benin
Burundi
Côte d’Ivoire
Cuba
Dominica
Gabon
The Gambia
Malawi
Mauritania
Nigeria
Senegal
Tanzania
Togo
Tonga
Venezuela
Zambia
Zimbabwe.
