Lawsuit Challenges Trump-Vance Green Card Policies Threatening Family Separation in 2026

The American Immigration Council has filed a new federal lawsuit challenging policies implemented by the Trump-Vance administration that legal advocates say unjustly threaten green card applicants with family separation. The lawsuit targets specific agency actions that critics argue violate due process protections guaranteed to individuals lawfully pursuing permanent residency in the United States. For EB-3 employment-based applicants, these policies carry significant implications. Many workers in the EB-3 pipeline have U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident family members, and any enforcement action that disrupts the adjustment of status process could result in prolonged separation while applications remain pending — sometimes for years due to per-country backlogs. The American Immigration Council, a non-profit legal advocacy organization, argues that the administration's policies lack proper legal authority and conflict with established immigration statutes that provide procedural protections for applicants who have already been approved for immigrant visa classifications. The lawsuit seeks to enjoin the challenged policies while litigation proceeds. This legal challenge joins a growing number of court cases scrutinizing the current administration's immigration enforcement approach. Court outcomes in these cases can directly affect whether EB-3 applicants are able to maintain continuous status and advance through the green card process without interruption. EB-3 applicants currently navigating the adjustment of status process are advised to consult with a qualified immigration attorney to understand how pending litigation and enforcement policy changes may affect their specific cases.