Kenyans hoping to secure permanent residency in the United States have been handed temporary reprieve after a U.S federal court moved against Trump administration policies that had halted the processing and issuance of Diversity Visas.

🇰🇪 Breaking It Down

The ruling was issued on 28 August by the US District Court for the Northern District of California after a petition was filed by Diversity Visa applicants challenging the Trump administration’s policies.

Judge Edward Davila certified classes of affected Diversity Visa applicants and temporarily vacated three government policies that had disrupted the programme, including a December 2025 USCIS policy placing a hold on pending adjustment-of-status applications for DV applicants.

Further, the court also addressed a separate State Department policy that had paused the issuance of Diversity Visas and another policy affecting immigrant visa applicants from 75 countries. The ruling found sufficient grounds to halt the challenged policies while the wider legal battle continues.

📌 What You Need to Know

The ruling will come as a relief for Kenyans in particular, since they are among the nationalities whose citizens can participate in the US Diversity Visa programme, commonly known as the Green Card Lottery.

The programme gives eligible applicants from countries with historically lower levels of immigration to the US an opportunity to obtain permanent residency.

For DV-2026, Kenyan applicants who were selected had to complete the required immigration process, including submitting the DS-260 immigrant visa application and, where scheduled, attending an interview and providing supporting documents and a medical examination.

The programme is particularly time-sensitive for those selected for DV-2026 . Under US law, selectees can only receive their Diversity Visas during the fiscal year for which they were selected, meaning the current programme expires on 30 September 2026. Visa numbers can also run out before that date.

The court ruling therefore offered potential relief to applicants whose cases had been caught in the administration’s suspension, particularly those who had already progressed through parts of the application process but were unable to receive a final decision.

Although the State Department said the December 2025 pause had ended following the 28 August court order, it has now paused the issuance of all Diversity Visas. The department said the new pause would allow it to review the programme’s screening and vetting procedures.

📰 Source: Kenyans.co.ke