Ninth Circuit Halts Green Card Lottery Restart

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals blocked an order that required the U.S. government to reopen the Diversity Visa lottery. The ruling allows the State Department to maintain the suspension of the program for fiscal year 2027. This decision pauses the process while the government appeals a lower court mandate.

The legal dispute began in August when Red Eagle Law sued Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The firm argued that the administration failed to open registration for the 2027 visa lottery. On October 14, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction. That order required the government to announce registration dates by October 29 and open the system by November 1.

The Trump administration appealed that injunction and asked for a stay. The Ninth Circuit agreed to the request. The judges found that the government likely had merit in its argument. Specifically, they ruled that Red Eagle Law had not established standing to file the lawsuit. The court clarified that it did not endorse the State Department’s decision to keep the lottery closed. It only found that the plaintiff had not shown sufficient grounds to continue the litigation at that stage.

The Diversity Visa program, also known as the Green Card lottery, offers up to 55,000 visas annually. These visas are reserved for citizens of countries with historically low rates of immigration to the United States. For many applicants, the lottery remains a primary route to permanent residence. The suspension leaves these potential applicants without access to the system for the upcoming year.

The program has been on pause since December of last year. The Trump administration suspended the lottery after a Portuguese citizen who won a visa through the program was identified as a suspect in shooting incidents in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. The suspect was later found dead by suicide. This incident prompted the administration to halt the process pending a review.

Curtis Morrison, the owner of Red Eagle Law, stated that his firm will seek other legal avenues to challenge the suspension. The case is part of a series of actions by the government to tighten legal immigration rules. These measures include increased vetting for permanent residency applicants, changes to migration fees, and restrictions on work visa programs. The current ruling keeps the legal battle ongoing without permanently ending the lottery.