United States President Donald Trump has introduced a new immigration policy requiring Nigerians and other foreign nationals seeking green cards to return to their home countries to complete the application process, except in special cases.
The directive was announced by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, which said the move was intended to restore the original structure of the country’s immigration system.
Under the new policy, individuals staying temporarily in the United States on student, tourist or work visas will no longer be allowed to process permanent residency applications from within the country in most situations. Instead, they will be required to submit their applications through American consular offices in their countries of origin.
US immigration officials said the measure was designed to reduce cases of people remaining in the country illegally after unsuccessful residency applications.
According to the agency, the system was originally created for temporary visitors to leave the United States once their approved stay expires, rather than using temporary visas as a pathway to permanent residency.
Officials also argued that handling more applications abroad would allow immigration authorities to focus resources on other services, including citizenship requests, human trafficking cases and support for victims of violent crimes.
The development is expected to affect thousands of foreign nationals already living legally in the United States who planned to adjust their immigration status without leaving the country.
The latest decision follows earlier restrictions introduced by the Trump administration. In late 2025, the US government temporarily suspended the processing of some green card and citizenship applications involving nationals from countries affected by the expanded travel ban.
The restrictions reportedly came after security concerns linked to a deadly shooting incident in Washington, DC, allegedly involving an Afghan national.
The new immigration rule has already sparked concerns among immigrants and advocacy groups, who fear it could create additional financial and logistical difficulties for applicants forced to leave the United States during the process.
