Trump policy requires green card seekers to apply from home countries

The Trump administration announced a policy requiring foreign nationals currently in the United States to return to their home countries to apply for green cards, a shift that could affect hundreds of thousands of applicants each year, The Korea Times reported.

The change reverses more than 50 years of practice that allowed people with legal status to complete green card processing from within the United States, and has immediately prompted confusion among immigration attorneys and applicants nationwide.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced the shift on its website Friday, stating that "from now on, an alien who is in the U.S. temporarily and wants a Green Card must return to their home country to apply, except in extraordinary circumstances." The agency also released a detailed policy memo for staff guidance, according to The Korea Times.

Immigration attorneys said the announcement triggered immediate alarm among clients. "It has a chilling effect because we have some cases that we were going to proceed and I can tell already, we should wait and see what's going on," said Flavia Santos Lloyd, an immigration attorney. Lloyd said she urged clients to stay calm. "I don't want everybody to panic. My advice to them is wait and see," she said.

Charles Kuck, an immigration attorney, dismissed the policy as a pressure campaign against legal immigration. "This is simply an attempt to try to limit and scare people away from the legal immigration process," Kuck said. "This is a scare tactic," he added, saying he expected legal challenges to follow.

The practical impact is expected to vary widely by visa category. Kevin Miner, a partner at Fragomen immigration law firm, said people on employment-based visas such as H-1Bs would likely be exempt under dual-intent provisions. "Those probably are cases that will continue to precede business as usual and that we won't see a significant impact," Miner said. Refugees unable to return home for security reasons may also be exempt.

Shev Dalal-Dheini, senior director of government relations at the American Immigration Lawyers Association, said the guidance appears aimed at those who overstayed their visas. "It seems like maybe who they're targeting is potentially those whose period of stay lapsed while they were here," Dalal-Dheini said. "It's going to be a very case by case specific thing," she added.

The Department of Homeland Security said the policy would have "no noticeable impact on highly qualified applicants and skilled professionals," The Korea Times reported.

The policy marks a notable pivot in the Trump administration's immigration strategy — extending restrictions beyond undocumented immigrants to target legal pathways that have been available for more than half a century.