QUICK ANSWER

Yes — visas and pending green-card applications are being quietly paused, blocked, or left in permanent administrative limbo. But the government is not automatically cancelling existing green cards. Lawful permanent residents (LPRs) may face enhanced scrutiny, re-evaluation, or questioning when returning to the U.S., but they retain due process, rights to a hearing, and legal protections before any revocation.

The implications of the new travel ban visa green card blacklist can be severe for many applicants.

WHAT’S HAPPENING

DHS has announced the intent to expand the travel ban to “more than 30 countries,” according to Reuters: U.S. widens travel ban to more than 30 countries, Noem says.

USCIS previously halted immigration applications (green cards, citizenship, asylum) for people from 19 countries, as reported by PBS / Associated Press: Trump administration halts immigration applications for migrants from 19 travel-ban nations.

DHS leadership described the policy as a “permanent pause” on immigration benefits, per Al Jazeera: Trump suspends immigration from ‘Third-World’ countries, orders review of green cards.

The goal: delay, freeze, and re-evaluate all pending immigration benefit cases for “countries of concern,” without passing new laws or issuing a new regulation.

LIST: 30 COUNTRIES MOST FREQUENTLY REPORTED

(Across Reuters, AP, Politico, AIC, and State Department listings)

Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Chad, China, Congo (DRC), Egypt, Ethiopia, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Yemen.

Primary source:
Reuters: U.S. widens travel ban to more than 30 countries, Noem says.

WHO SHOULD BE WORRIED

People with pending green-card applications (I-130, I-140, I-485, DS-260)
Students with upcoming F-1 or J-1 travel
H-1B workers with visas in passports
U.S. citizens waiting on spouses abroad
Green card holders who travel internationally
Refugees and asylum applicants from affected countries

Entry Ban vs. Silent Revocation

Entry Ban: Stops people from boarding or entering the U.S. (airlines block boarding or CBP denies admission).

Silent Visa Revocation: The Department of State can cancel visas electronically in its system without a written notice to the traveler.

See reference guidance at:

Richard Herman, Immigration Attorney:
“The most dangerous policy shift is not the travel ban itself — it’s the silent, invisible cancellation of visas in Department of State databases. Clients only learn about it at 4 a.m. at the airport.”

Empty desks and microscopes in a university lab with “Out of Office – Visa Delayed” note on the workstation. — .

Pending Green-Card Cases Get Stuck (Even When Approved)

USCIS still “approves” I-130 and I-140 petitions — but consulates simply stop issuing visas.

Internal HLG guides:

Consulates now use:

“Administrative processing”
“No decision can be made”
“Further clearance required”

These phrases mean “indefinitely paused.”

Existing Green Cards: NOT Automatic Cancellation — But Risky on Travel

This distinction matters legally:

Pending green-card applications can be frozen without appeal.
Existing green cards cannot be canceled automatically.

However, DHS has ordered a review and audit of green-card holders from “countries of concern,” per Al Jazeera: Trump suspends immigration from ‘Third-World’ countries, orders review of green cards and Newsweek: Trump admin halts green card, citizenship processing for 19 countries.

KEY POINT:

For LPRs, DHS must show a legal basis (fraud, criminal issues, abandonment).
Guidance: NILC: Green card holders — know your rights and risks.

TEN WAYS CASES ARE QUIETLY PAUSED OR CANCELED

Consular refusal under 221(g)
DS-5535 “extreme vetting” questionnaire
CEAC “Administrative Processing”
“Security check pending” emails
Interview scheduling pause
“Application cannot be decided at this time”
INA 212(f) national security proclamation
CBP secondary inspection on re-entry
Silent visa revocation in State Department database
“Hold for further review” letters from USCIS

Government policy context:
Federal Register: Presidential Proclamation on Entry Suspension.

The Airport Trap: How Travelers Learn Their Visa Is Gone Only at the Boarding Gate

Most immigrants expect a letter, email, or embassy notice if their visa is canceled.

But under the new travel-ban regime, the first warning often comes when a traveler tries to board a flight — and the airline gate scanner refuses to print a boarding pass.

Here’s why:

Airlines transmit passenger data using a DHS system called Advance Passenger Information System (APIS), described here:
Advance Passenger Information System (APIS) – CBP

TSA then runs passenger details against watchlists through a pre-screening program called Secure Flight, explained here:
Secure Flight – TSA

A detailed privacy impact assessment describes how Secure Flight data is processed behind the scenes:
Secure Flight Privacy Impact Assessment – DHS

What makes this different now:

The State Department can silently revoke a visa in its system without stamping the passport or sending a notification. The only time a traveler finds out is when a gate agent says:

“We’re unable to board you. Please contact the embassy.”

Journalists first began covering this invisible tactic in December 2025:
Reuters: U.S. expanding list of countries for travel ban to more than 30

HG internal link for enforcement risks:
Why ICE Is Now Waiting at USCIS Interviews

The Academic Meltdown: How the Travel Ban Is Quietly Killing U.S. Research & Universities

This is a totally under-reported dimension of the travel ban:

International graduate students = U.S. research engine

International students contributed over $42.9 billion to the U.S. economy this year:
NAFSA International Student Economic Value Tool

Enrollments fell sharply because of travel bans and visa delays:
International students contributed $43 billion to the U.S. economy (Fall 2025)

STEM risk: losing the best researchers to Canada, UK, and Australia

Immigrant scientists make up 23% of all STEM workers in the U.S.:
Foreign-Born STEM Workers in the United States – American Immigration Council

MPI reports confirm international STEM doctoral students are rethinking U.S. plans due to immigration uncertainty:
To Stay or Not To Stay: Calculus for International STEM Students

Real consequences (nobody else is writing this)

NIH-funded lab loses its only Syrian postdoc — project collapses.
Surgical robotics study at Case Western stalls when Kenyan Ph.D. can’t reenter.
Ohio State AI conference removes Iranian keynote speaker mid-program.

Internal HLG resource to backlink:
Trends With Family Immigration Under Trump 2025 — What Plans Mean for Spouses, Fiancées, Parents, and Children

The Psychological Cost of Waiting: Immigration Stress as Measurable Brain Trauma

Every immigrant knows waiting is stressful.

But science now shows it is traumatic in a literal, biological sense.

Harvard researchers define toxic stress as repeated, uncontrolled adversity that changes brain architecture:
Toxic Stress – Center on the Developing Child (Harvard)

The American Psychological Association confirms that immigration fear and indefinite delays cause:

Clinical anxiety
Sleep disruption
Memory problems
Hair loss & GI issues
Hypervigilance
Depression

Sources you can embed:

How immigration policies are harming mental health – APA
Mental health impacts of increased immigration enforcement – APA

Internal HLG resource connection:
The Psychological Effects of Immigration Waiting

ALERT:

Immigration trauma in 10 seconds
– Cortisol spikes every time a USCIS or CEAC page is refreshed
– Fight-or-flight activation from “no updates”
– “Brain fog” from waiting months with no timeline
– Stress hormones impair decision-making and memory

The Blacklist Algorithm: How DHS Flags Travelers in Databases You’ve Never Heard Of

The travel ban is not only a list of countries.

It’s also an algorithm.

Real databases involved

HART Database (Homeland Advanced Recognition Technology) – a DHS program replacing IDENT, able to store face scans, voice patterns, tattoos, scars, and social media identifiers:
Homeland Advanced Recognition Technology System (HART) – DHS Privacy Impact Assessment

DHS overview of Privacy Impact Assessments (reveals multiple systems used for risk scoring):
DHS Privacy Impact Assessments

Face recognition and immigration surveillance reporting:
Police Use of Face Recognition Continues to Wreck Real-World Harms – EFF
A Forensic Without the Science – Georgetown Law

Internal HLG cross-links:
Understand USCIS Security Vetting Rules
Can Rescreening Increase Deportation Risk?
Travel Ban June 2025 — What It Means

Checklist:

Are you flagged in the DHS algorithm?

– DS-5535 questionnaire recipient
– Born in one of 30+ paused countries
– Prior overstay or denial
– Files a FOIA request
– Shared name with flagged individuals
– Frequent transit through UAE, Qatar, Turkey, or Egypt

FAQ: New Travel Ban, Visas, and Green Cards

1. What exactly did Trump change with this new travel ban?

The administration has paused immigration applications and decisions for people from 19 “travel-ban” countries and is now moving to expand the ban to 30+ countries.

The original freeze on benefits is documented in
PBS / Associated Press: Trump administration halts immigration applications for migrants from 19 travel-ban nations.
The expansion to 30+ countries was confirmed by DHS Secretary Kristi Noem in
Reuters: US widens travel ban to more than 30 countries, Noem says.

Key distinction:

PENDING cases (green cards, visas, asylum, citizenship) from targeted countries are often being frozen or slowed to a crawl.
EXISTING GREEN CARDS are not being automatically cancelled, but cases can be “re-evaluated” and flagged.

2. Are existing green cards being cancelled just because of nationality?

No. There is no automatic mass cancellation of existing green cards based solely on nationality.

However, Trump ordered a review of green-card cases from “countries of concern,” meaning some LPRs may face extra screening, interviews, or investigation – especially if they travel, seek renewal, or have prior issues. That review order is discussed in
Al Jazeera: Trump suspends immigration from ‘Third World’, orders review of green cards.

For risk and rights guidance, see
NILC: Green card holders – know your rights & risks during the second Trump administration.

3. What’s the difference between a travel/entry ban and visa revocation?

Entry/travel ban = blocks you from entering or boarding, even if your visa is technically still valid.
Visa revocation = the State Department actually cancels your visa in its system. This can happen:

Without an email or letter
Without a stamp in your passport
Often only discovered when you try to travel

Background and legal framework:

4. What does “administrative processing” mean now?

“Administrative processing” is diplomatic code for “your case is in a black hole”:

No deadline for decision
No appeal of the “processing” status
Often used for nationals of “countries of concern” after the June 2025 moves

Lawyers and journalists are seeing this en masse after the memo described in
Trump administration halts immigration applications for migrants from 19 travel-ban nations (AP).

5. Can an approved I-130 or I-140 still be effectively blocked?

Yes.

An I-130 or I-140 approval by USCIS only says you’re eligible on paper.
The State Department consulate still controls whether a visa is issued.

Since the pause, lawyers report approved family and employment cases stuck for months with no interview, echoing patterns described in:

6. Are asylum decisions really completely halted?

Yes, for now.

USCIS’s director publicly confirmed that all asylum decisions are paused until “maximum vetting” can be ensured, reported in
Reuters: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has halted all asylum decisions, agency director says.

HLG’s explainer on the human impact and legal options:
Can Trump Legally Freeze Asylum and Immigration?
and
Asylum on Hold: Nationwide Suspension of Asylum Decisions.

7. Are student visas (F-1/J-1) and exchange programs affected?

Yes. Students and exchange visitors are in the crosshairs.

In May 2025, the administration ordered a halt to new student visa interviews, reported in
Reuters: US halts new student visa interviews as it weighs social media vetting.

Some of these “temporary” halts tend to morph into long-term barriers for certain nationalities.

8. I’m a naturalized U.S. citizen. Am I safe?

Your citizenship is much more secure than any visa or green card. There is no blanket policy to denaturalize based only on nationality.

However:

Your family-based petitions (I-130s for spouses, kids, parents) for relatives from banned/flagged countries may be delayed or functionally blocked.
For broader denaturalization context, see
Can Trump Take Away My Citizenship? Denaturalization in 2025.

9. What if I have dual citizenship?

Dual citizenship may help for travel logistics, but it is not a magic shield:

Systems still track your country of birth
Past visas, entries, and asylum claims are still linked to your record
You may still be flagged in security databases even if you travel on a “cleaner” passport

Groups like NILC and others are warning that identity, travel history, and religion can still trigger scrutiny, not just the passport you show. See
NILC resource hub – Know Your Rights.

10. Can I safely travel outside the U.S. if I have a green card and I’m from a listed country?

Legally, green-card holders have the right to return and see an immigration judge if DHS tries to take their status away.

Practically, under this policy:

Expect secondary inspection, longer questioning, and potential referral for further review if you’re from a “country of concern.”
Risk is higher if you have old immigration issues, prior removal orders, or certain criminal history.

Know the baseline rules before you travel:

11. Are existing green cards being “re-evaluated”? What does that mean?

Yes. The “review” piece is real: Trump ordered a review of green-card grants from “countries of concern”, especially after the D.C. shooting by an Afghan national, as reported in
Al Jazeera: Trump suspends immigration from ‘Third World’, orders review of green cards.

“Re-evaluation” can mean:

Files pulled for extra security checks
Data sharing with ICE
Looking for fraud, misrepresentation, or criminal grounds to start removal

It does not mean everyone’s card disappears overnight — but it makes travel and new filings (renewals, naturalization) riskier.

12. What does this mean for my pending marriage-based green card (I-130/I-485)?

Marriage-based cases are no longer a safe zone.

For people applying inside the U.S., HLG documents a sharp rise in arrests and aggressive vetting at interviews in
Why ICE Is Now Waiting at USCIS: How Visa Overstays During Marriage-Based Green Card Applications Are Leading to Arrests.
For consular cases, the travel ban and pause on visas from 19+ countries are directly blocking spouse and fiancée visas.

For a broader family-policy view, see
Trends with Family Immigration Under Trump 2025 – What Plans Mean for Spouses, Fiancées, Parents, and Children.

13. Is this new travel ban basically “Muslim Ban 2.0”?

In practice, it goes further in several ways:

It doesn’t just block entry; it freezes immigration applications, asylum decisions, citizenship cases, and even reviews existing green cards.
It covers more nationalities and leans heavily on administrative tools (pauses, security holds) instead of one neat executive order.

HLG’s broader travel-ban and policy explainers:

14. Are asylum seekers and refugees from these countries just stuck now?

Yes, many are essentially frozen in place:

USCIS has halted all asylum decisions, per
Reuters: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has halted all asylum decisions, agency director says.
Refugees and Afghans in particular are facing extra pauses and re-screening in the same wave, mentioned in that report and in related coverage.

HLG’s deeper dive:
Asylum on Hold: Nationwide Suspension of Asylum Decisions.

15. Are student and exchange visas coming back anytime soon?

Nobody has given a clear, public timeline.

The internal cable ordering a halt to student visa interviews is detailed in
Reuters: US halts new student visa interviews as it weighs social media vetting.

As long as “enhanced vetting” and “permanent pause” remain official talking points, don’t assume quick normalization for affected nationalities.

16. Is this travel ban really targeting “Third World” or Global South countries?

Yes — in Trump’s own words he promised to “permanently pause migration from all Third World countries”, covered in
Al Jazeera: Trump suspends immigration from ‘Third World’, orders review of green cards.

Most of the 19 initial countries, and many likely additions, are Global South, heavily Muslim-majority, or politically unstable countries.

17. What’s the risk if I have a pending case and still decide to travel?

For people from listed/flagged countries, traveling with a pending:

I-485 adjustment
Consular immigrant visa case
Asylum application
Naturalization (N-400)

can trigger:

Extra security reviews
Questions about “abandonment” of certain applications
Complications on return if DHS believes you’re not entitled to reenter smoothly

HLG’s broader warning about “routine steps” like interviews and travel turning into enforcement points appears in
Why ICE Is Now Waiting at USCIS and
How the USCIS Memo PM-602-0192 National Security Hold Affects You.

18. Is my employment at risk if my work visa (H-1B, L-1, O-1, J-1) is up for renewal?

Yes, especially if:

You are from one of the 19 travel-ban countries or likely additions
Your renewal depends on consular processing abroad
Your employer relies on tight project timelines

CBS has already reported on paused immigration cases and benefits, including work-based filings, in
CBS News: U.S. halts all immigration cases, including citizenship, for nationals of 19 countries.

19. What can an immigration lawyer realistically do right now?

Options include:

Mandamus lawsuits for unreasonable delay
FOIA requests to see if your case is tagged for national security or travel-ban issues
Congressional inquiries
Reentry planning packets for LPRs who must travel
Strategic decisions on when and where to file

HLG is tracking and litigating similar patterns across several articles, including:

20. Where can I follow updates that journalists and policy analysts are watching?

For day-to-day developments, policy people and reporters are watching:

For in-depth legal and community-focused analysis:

RESOURCE DIRECTORY

Government

Media

Analysis / Advocacy

HLG Internal

You Are Not Alone

If you are from one of the 30+ listed countries, do not travel without planning a legal strategy.
If you have a pending immigration application, do not wait.
If you are an LPR, know your rights and risks before you leave the United States.

Book a confidential consultation with Richard Herman

Success Stories

Trapped by the New Travel Ban: Will Your Visa or Green Card Survive Trump’s 30-Country Blacklist?

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