IMPORTANT SIV UPDATE:

The government has paused issuing visas to Afghan SIV applicants. 

The deadline to file an application for COM approval under the Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program was December 31, 2025. 

If you have a pending COM application, the U.S. government has stated that the deadline to submit any outstanding documents for your pending COM application was June 5, 2026.

If you receive a COM denial letter and you are able to appeal it, you should still have 120 days from the date the decision letter was sent to you, even if that date is after June 5, 2026. The June 5, 2026 deadline is only to submit additional documents for a pending application.

You can learn more about what this means for SIV applicants here.

This article was last updated on August 3, 2026

Summary

This article is for people who are looking for information about changes to U.S. government immigration policies in 2025 and 2026 and what they mean for people from Afghanistan.

What are the policy changes?

In 2025 and 2026, the U.S. government announced the following immigration policy changes that affected Afghans inside and outside the United States:

• The U.S. government stopped issuing most visas to Afghan nationals and said that most Afghan nationals would not be allowed to enter the United States. You can find more information on the current “travel ban” impacting Afghans here.
• The U.S. government stopped processing immigration requests for Afghan nationals. However, on June 5, 2026, a federal court said this policy was illegal. The U.S. government should now continue processing requests, but the case could be appealed. More information about this lawsuit is available here.
• The U.S. government said it will review immigration applications that have already been approved for Afghans who came to the U.S. since 2021. However, on June 5, 2026, a federal court said this policy was illegal. The case could be appealed. More information about this lawsuit is available here.
• The U.S. government will no longer accept new applications for Chief of Mission (COM) approval under the Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program after December 31, 2025. More information about the SIV application deadline is available here.

What does this mean for Afghan SIV applicants?

The government has paused issuing visas to Afghan SIV applicants. 

The deadline to file an application for COM approval under the Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program was December 31, 2025. The government will not accept any new applications after December 31, 2025 unless lawmakers in the United States (“Congress”) pass a law to extend the application deadline. 

What this means for SIV applicants, at this time:

• If you have a pending COM application: you do not need to take any action at this time. The U.S. government has stated that the deadline to submit any outstanding documents for your pending COM application is June 5, 2025.
• If you are preparing a COM appeal: you must submit it within 120 days of receiving the COM denial letter. Your appeal should still be reviewed as long as it is submitted within the 120-day deadline, even if it is sent after December 31, 2025. 
• If you have a pending COM appeal, and it is denied after December 31, 2025: you will not be able to send in a new application.
• If you do not have a pending COM application or appeal, and the timeframe to submit your appeal has passed, you will not be permitted to start a new COM application.
• If you have COM approval: and you are currently outside of the U.S., you will need to continue the remaining steps of the SIV application process at a U.S. Embassy outside of Afghanistan. As of December 1, 2025, we understand that visa interviews will continue for SIV applicants, but that applications which would otherwise be approved will now be denied. Please see below for more information about how these changes affect Afghans applying for visas.

What does this mean for Afghans applying for a visa to enter the U.S.?

As of January 1, 2026, the U.S. government’s expanded travel ban policy says that most Afghan visa applicants cannot receive visas or enter the United States. This includes Afghan SIV applicants.

This means that if you are an Afghan visa applicant in an affected visa category, the U.S. embassy may deny your visa under something called “212(f),” which is a part of U.S. immigration laws. If your visa application is based on an approved immigration “petition” – such as a COM application, or an I-130 petition – a denial under 212(f) should not impact the approval of that petition. However, you might need to submit a new visa application through the Embassy or Consulate when the travel ban is lifted. Therefore, if you have a pending visa application, you may want to wait to have your visa interview. This is a complicated issue, and you may want to speak with an immigration attorney about your options before making a decision.

If you choose to delay your visa interview, you should take steps to prevent your case from being considered “inactive” by the State Department. At least once per year, you should contact the government to ask that your case remain open while you wait for the travel ban to end. If your case is still at the National Visa Center (NVC) and has not yet been sent to a U.S. Embassy or Consulate, you should use the NVC Public Inquiry Form to make that request. If your case has already been sent to a U.S. Embassy or Consulate, you should contact the Embassy or Consulate directly. Make sure to keep a copy of your request and the government’s response, including any automatic replies confirming that your request was received.

If you receive a notification from NVC that your visa is being cancelled because you have not taken action on your case in one year, please see IRAP’s information here about how to respond to the cancellation letter and keep your case active until you are ready for the visa interview.

What does this mean for Afghans with pending USCIS applications (I-130, I-730, Parole, I-485)?

From November 2025 to January 2026, the U.S. government announced new policies that impacted USCIS applications from Afghan nationals. These policies paused final decisions on these applications, and they also said that USCIS could consider someone being from Afghanistan to be a “significant negative factor” when making decisions. On June 5, 2026, a federal court said these policies were illegal. The U.S. government should now begin  processing immigration applications again, and they should stop using the place you were born as a negative factor in your applications. This case could be appealed. More information about this lawsuit is available here.

What does this mean for Afghans in the U.S. who arrived under the Biden Administration?

In December 2025, USCIS said it would be “re-examining” all immigration benefits approved for immigrants who entered the United States since January 20, 2021 from Afghanistan and other countries listed in the travel ban. However, on June 5, 2026, a federal court said this policy was illegal. The US government should no longer be re-reviewing all Afghan cases just because they involve Afghans. However, the government can still review old cases based on individual factors. Also, this case could be appealed. More information about this lawsuit is available here.

In November 2025, the government also announced plans to “re-vet” all refugees who arrived in the U.S. through the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program under President Biden. This includes Afghan refugees who arrived between January 20, 2021 and February 20, 2025. For more information on the refugee revetting policy, see here.

Lawful permanent residents (LPRs), or “green card holders,” have particular rights under U.S. law. If you are a lawful permanent resident in this country and the government wants to take away your green card, this is what you might expect: 

• If you applied for your green card while in the U.S. and received it within the last five years: USCIS is allowed to to take away your green card if they believe you did not qualify for the green card at the time you received it. To do this, USCIS must first notify you that they are taking away your green card. If this happens then you have the right to ask an immigration judge to review this decision. 

• If you applied for and received your green card in the U.S. more than five years ago or entered the U.S. as a permanent resident (on an immigrant visa): In order to try and take away your green card, the government must start removal proceedings against you in immigration court. Through this process, you will be able to present your case in front of an immigration judge. You will keep your green card throughout the immigration court process unless a judge decides to take away your green card and orders that you need to leave the U.S.