VERIFIED NEWS · USCIS LITIGATION

USCIS says court temporarily vacated Diversity Visa adjustment hold

The order concerns pending adjustment applications filed through the fiscal year 2026 Diversity Visa program. It is temporary court relief, not a new regulation or an approval of every covered case.

Exterior of the Robert F. Peckham Federal Building and United States Courthouse in San Jose, California

Official Northern District of California photograph. The image shows the San Jose courthouse where the judge identified on the court's official site sits. It is illustrative and does not depict the hearing, plaintiffs, Diversity Visa applicants, USCIS officers, or an adjudication. Original federal court page ↗. Source page reviewed September 7, 2026.

By U.S. Immigration Brief Editorial DeskPublished September 7, 2026Last verified September 7, 2026

What USCIS reported

USCIS said the court temporarily vacated Policy Memorandum PM-602-0193 in Medani, et al. v. Trump, et al. The agency quoted the order as requiring it, to the extent practicable and in good faith, to take reasonable steps during the remainder of the Diversity Visa fiscal year to resume ordinary adjudication of the plaintiffs' pending adjustment applications without applying that memorandum.

The court order is temporary

The alert says the policy memorandum is vacated pending further litigation. USCIS also said it strongly disagrees with the order but will comply while possible further judicial review remains open. That makes this litigation—not a final regulation, statute, or final resolution of the lawsuit.

What the order does not establish

The federal record does not say that every fiscal year 2026 selectee will receive permanent residence, that ordinary eligibility and security review disappears, or that USCIS will finish a particular application by a particular date. Selection in the Diversity Visa program is not itself an approval, and visa-number availability remains a separate part of the annual program.

USCIS processing is not consular issuance

The notice specifically describes USCIS adjustment-of-status applications inside the United States. The State Department manages Diversity Visa cases processed through U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Those agency paths should not be combined or described as one processing queue.

Primary federal sources

Corrections: No corrections have been made. Any later court order or agency change will be dated and verified against a new federal record.