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United States President Donald Trump has directed that Nigerians and other nationals applying for green cards must return to their home countries to apply for the process except in extraordinary circumstances.
The new immigration development was disclosed on Friday.
According to a press statement issued by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, the agency said the policy was aimed at restoring what it described as the “original intent” of US immigration law.
The statement noted that aliens seeking adjustment of status would now be required to process their residency applications through US consular offices abroad under the supervision of the United States Department of State.
The agency stated, “We’re returning to the original intent of the law to ensure aliens navigate our nation’s immigration system properly. From now on, an alien who is in the U.S. temporarily and wants a Green Card must return to their home country to apply, except in extraordinary circumstances.”
USCIS spokesman, Zach Kahler, said the policy would help reduce the number of migrants remaining illegally in the country after unsuccessful residency applications.
“This policy allows our immigration system to function as the law intended instead of incentivising loopholes. When aliens apply from their home country, it reduces the need to find and remove those who decide to slip into the shadows and remain in the U.S. illegally after being denied residency,” Kahler said.
The agency explained that the policy would particularly affect temporary visitors such as students, tourists and workers who enter the U.S. on nonimmigrant visas.
“Nonimmigrants, like students, temporary workers, or people on tourist visas, come to the U.S. for a short time and for a specific purpose. Our system is designed for them to leave when their visit is over. Their visit should not function as the first step in the Green Card process,” the statement added.
USCIS further argued that routing residency applications through consular offices abroad would free up limited agency resources to focus on other immigration priorities.
The statement added that the agency would be able to dedicate more attention to applications involving victims of violent crimes, human trafficking cases, naturalisation requests and other immigration services under its jurisdiction.
“The law was written this way for a reason, and despite the fact that it has been ignored for years, following it will help make our system fairer and more efficient.”
Recall that in December 2025, Trump temporarily halted the processing of green card and citizenship applications filed by Nigerians and nationals of other countries newly added to the US travel ban, according to a report by CBS News.
The suspension affects legal immigration applications handled by the USCIS and mainly targets immigrants from selected African and Asian countries.
Many of those affected are already living legally in the United States and were seeking to adjust their immigration status or become American citizens.
Also, the Trump administration directed USCIS to freeze all immigration petitions, including applications for permanent residency and citizenship, from nationals of 19 countries covered by the travel ban announced in June.
The decision followed the Thanksgiving week shooting of two National Guard soldiers in Washington DC, an attack allegedly carried out by an Afghan national.
