Lawsuit Challenges New Trump-Vance Administration Rules that Strip Refugees of Legal Protections Without Due Process

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

October 26, 2026

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Democracy Forward: press@democracyforward.org

African Communities Together: press@africans.us

LAWSUIT CHALLENGES NEW TRUMP-VANCE ADMINISTRATION RULES THAT STRIP REFUGEES OF LEGAL PROTECTIONS WITHOUT DUE PROCESS

Class Action Challenges Indefinite Freeze on Permanent Residency Applications, Mass Re-Vetting of Lawfully Admitted Refugees, and a New Rule Slashing Time to Defend Refugee Status

(Boston, MA) — Today, refugee advocacy organizations and four individual plaintiffs filed a class action lawsuit challenging three sweeping Trump-Vance administration policies that block lawfully admitted refugees from obtaining permanent residency, subject them to mass re-vetting, and make it easier for the federal government to terminate their refugee status. The plaintiffs also seek emergency relief to prevent the administration from implementing these policies while the case proceeds, given reports of notices of intent to terminate refugee status.

The lawsuit challenges actions by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) that dramatically rewrite longstanding immigration protections. For decades, the government could terminate refugee status only with 30 days’ notice and an opportunity to respond. The Trump-Vance administration’s new policies instead let the government revoke refugee status with only 10 days’ notice. Those unable to defend themselves in this shortened period are subject to removal and detention.

Plaintiffs in the case include Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans (PANA), Jewish Family Service of Western Massachusetts (JFSWM), International Institute of New England (IINE), African Communities Together (ACT), HIAS, Refugee Council USA (RCUSA), and four individuals from Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Colombia, and Iraq who fled persecution or were unlawfully detained while waiting for a decision on their green card applications. They are represented by the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP), Democracy Forward, and pro bono counsel.

The challenged policies include:

An indefinite freeze on green card applications: A November 2025 policy halts processing of lawful permanent residence applications submitted by refugees admitted during the Biden administration, preventing them from obtaining the protections available to eligible refugees under federal law.
Mass re-vetting of previously admitted refugees: The same policy directs USCIS to review and re-interview refugees who already completed extensive screening before being lawfully admitted to the United States, exposing them to possible termination of their refugee status.
A drastic reduction in due process protections: An October 14, 2026 rule cuts the time refugees have to respond to a notice of intent to terminate their status from 30 days to just 10 days. The Trump-Vance administration implemented the rule immediately, overturning a 45-year-old protection.

Under the new policies, refugees who have lived in the United States for years, many of them with families, jobs, and pending applications for permanent residence, are not only blocked from moving forward on their path to citizenship but may suddenly lose work authorization, be put in removal proceedings, and face potentially indefinite detention, separation, or even deportation from their families and communities. These attacks on refugees are already having devastating consequences for families and communities across the country.

According to DHS’s own estimates, about 113,000 refugees have pending applications for permanent residency, and the new termination rule could affect as many as 186,000 refugee cases.

“Refugees fled violence and persecution, passed the most extensive vetting of anyone who comes to this country, and did everything the law asked of them,” said Hussein Elbakri, Senior Staff Attorney, U.S. Litigation, International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP). “Now, the Trump administration is freezing their green card applications, re-vetting them for no reason, and giving them just ten days to save their status before sending them back to danger. These actions are an outrageous betrayal of the fundamental promise of protection this country has made to refugees, and are part of a broader effort to strip immigrants of their legal status and enact a racist and xenophobic vision of who gets to be American. We’re suing to stop it now.”

“The Trump-Vance administration is trapping refugees in cruel legal limbo by blocking their path to permanent residency while simultaneously making it easier to strip them of their lawful status and the protections they are eligible for,” said Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward. “These are people who fled persecution, underwent years of rigorous vetting, and have built lives, families, and communities in the United States. Instead of honoring our nation’s longstanding commitment to protecting refugees, this administration is threatening to uproot them and send them back to the very dangers they escaped. These inhumane and unlawful policies violate fundamental due process protections, and we are going to court to stop them.”

“Refugees are part of the fabric of this country—neighbors, friends, and trusted coworkers. These moves are a horrific reversal of longstanding policies of welcoming vulnerable families from countries facing war and other dire conditions,” said Maria Chavez, Immigration Legal Director for Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans (PANA). “The reality is that we all lose when refugees are stripped of due protection and turned away en masse. We must continue to protect refugees and fulfill the promise of safety and stability that we as Americans made when we agreed to resettle them to the United States.”

“Due to the October IFR, refugee families are now at risk of having their status arbitrarily stripped by the government that had already deemed them to be on a path to citizenship after years of careful deliberation, examination, and vetting. When combined with a freeze on processing their green card applications, we break our legal commitment to people who have fled life-threatening situations to restart their lives in the United States,” said Camille Wathne, Director of Special Projects at Jewish Family Service of Western Massachusetts. “No one is made better, or safer, or more whole by capriciously changing the rules to squeeze our friends, neighbors, classmates and co-workers into increasingly dire and tenuous situations. Service providers such as JFSWM, as well as the refugee families we serve, are now having to hold two truths at once – that there is both a deep desire and expectation to find a home, build a community, and become a part of this place, while also preparing for the reality that their refugee status, which often took over a decade to demonstrate and litigate, could be randomly stripped away in the span of 10 days.” 

“What the federal government is attempting to do—strip refugees of their legal protections—is, at its core, un-American,” said Jeff Thielman, President & CEO of the International Institute of New England. “As a nation, we cannot claim to value justice, lawfulness, and humanity and then allow our government to deport its community members without due process. IINE is proud to join our fellow plaintiffs in fighting back against this unconstitutional cruelty.”

“The Administration’s attempts to undo decades of bipartisan effort to create a refugee system that admits, protects, and integrates refugees into the United States must stop,” said Diana Konaté, Deputy Executive Director of Policy and Advocacy at African Communities Together. “The proposed rules will leave thousands of people suddenly without clarity on what’s next for them and their families. The refugee program has only proven to be an asset to the growth and success of the United States. Without fair and clear pathways for refuge, there will be major losses that will be felt in our communities and worldwide.”

“In the space of mere months, this administration has broken the sacred promise of safety and a better future that our country has offered to refugees for generations,” said HIAS Deputy Domestic Lead Smita Dazzo. “Not content to merely turn away the refugees we once welcomed with open arms, the Trump administration is now deliberately seeking to send people back to danger.

“In the face of an unprecedented string of unconstitutional attacks that terrorize and endanger refugee communities, RCUSA stands resolute alongside refugees, including those already resettled in the United States and those stranded abroad,” said John Slocum, Executive Director of Refugee Council USA. “This administration has consistently tried to undermine the durability of refugee protections and to dehumanize individuals fleeing violence and persecution. Everyone deserves a safe place to call home. That requires holding the federal government accountable for its discriminatory and unlawful targeting of refugees. We must denounce any attempt to dismantle access to permanent protection. With this lawsuit, RCUSA takes a principled stand against a federal government that appears poised to begin deporting resettled refugees en masse.”

The lawsuit argues that the administration’s actions violate the Immigration and Nationality Act and the Administrative Procedure Act by attempting to subject lawfully admitted refugees to mass revetting and a blanket hold on adjustment of status, which Congress never authorized. It also warns that the new rules threaten thousands of refugees nationwide and undermine the commitments Congress established in the Refugee Act of 1980 to provide protection and stability to people fleeing persecution.

The plaintiffs ask the court to block the challenged policies while litigation proceeds, including by issuing an immediate administrative stay of the new refugee status termination rule. The lawsuit also seeks to permanently invalidate the unlawful policies.

The case is PANA et al. v. Edlow et al and the legal team includes Hussein Elbakri, Lupe Aguirre, Dalia Fuleihan, Kimberly Grano, Ghita Schwarz, and Pedro Sepúlveda Jr. from IRAP and Erez Reuveni, Jennie Kneedler, Cynthia Liao, Steven Bressler, and Robin Thurston from Democracy Forward.

Additional Information

Read the complaint: HERE
Read IRAP’s legal explainer on the new interim final rule on refugee terminations: HERE
Access Know Your Rights information for refugees living in the United States: HERE

The International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) is a global legal aid and advocacy organization working to create a world where refugees and all people seeking safety are empowered to claim their right to freedom of movement and a path to lasting refuge. Everyone should have a safe place to live and a safe way to get there.

www.refugeerights.org

###