Over 9,000 additional diversity visas must be issued by the State Department prior to October 2022. A federal judge set the date as a fair balance between the dates requested by the 2020 diversity visa lottery winners and the State Department’s requested timeline. With the October 2022 deadline, the State Department will need to process just under 1,000 additional 2020 diversity visas per day.

An August ruling from the same federal judge stated the State Department illegally used a Trump administration policy to stop processing diversity visas in 2020. At that time, the judge did not set a deadline for the State Department. Rather, he urged the parties to work together to come to a mutual agreement. However, when the parties could not reach a date, the judge stepped back in and set the date.

The original case was filed to challenge a Trump administration executive order that banned foreign citizens from moving to the U.S. on a new immigrant visa to combat the COVID crisis. That order was enacted in April 2020. Closely following that order, individuals sued the State Department, and others, saying it was illegal to stop processing visa applications.

Earlier this year, the Biden administration asked the federal judge to dismiss the case on the ground that the executive order was reversed under his administration. The parties to the lawsuit stated the repercussions of that policy continued to affect them as they have not yet been able to immigrate.

The State Department can appeal this federal judge’s order, which would further delay processing. ILBSG continues to monitor ongoing legal actions around immigration, including the ongoing impact of COVID-related policies. If you have questions about your immigration issue, contact us at ILBSG. We put our expertise and experience to work for you.

Diversity Visa