US Court Orders Trump Administration to Resume Processing Afghan SIV Applications

A US court has ordered the Trump administration to resume processing Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) applications for Afghan refugees.

The International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) announced that Judge Tanya Chutkan of the US District Court for the District of Columbia ruled that an indefinite ban on SIV processing violates congressional mandates and existing court orders. The decision, issued last Friday in the case "Afghan and Iraqi Allies Against Rubio," requires the administration to process applications in a timely manner according to a specified schedule.

Although President Trump's travel ban on Afghan citizens remains in effect, Judge Chutkan directed immediate resumption of SIV reviews. She stated that Trump administration officials "have no legal or statutory authority to unilaterally halt processes that Congress has mandated be expedited."

The ruling supports Afghans who worked with US forces for years and whose SIV applications have been pending beyond statutory deadlines. Kimberly Grano, an IRAP lawyer, described the decision as a rebuke to the administration's efforts, which she said ignore court orders and abandon Afghans still at risk from the Taliban. Grano noted that many allies have waited years, sometimes over a decade, and emphasized the US government's legal obligation to fulfill its promise to protect them.

The court has scheduled a hearing for February 24, at which the US government must explain how it plans to improve compliance with the order to expedite SIV processing.