{"id":2719,"date":"2026-05-08T16:02:26","date_gmt":"2026-05-08T16:02:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=2719"},"modified":"2026-05-08T16:02:26","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T16:02:26","slug":"us-lifts-hold-on-immigration-applications-for-doctors-but-leaves-others-waiting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=2719","title":{"rendered":"US lifts hold on immigration applications for doctors, but leaves others waiting"},"content":{"rendered":"

By SAFIYAH RIDDLE and AMY TAXIN<\/strong><\/p>\n

Libyan Dr. Faysal Alghoula must renew his green card to continue caring for roughly 1,000 patients in southwestern Indiana, but hasn\u2019t been able to since the Trump administration stopped reviewing applications for people from several dozen countries it deemed high-risk.<\/p>

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Alghoula\u2019s current visa will expire in September if his application is denied.<\/p>\n

But last week, the administration quietly made an exemption for medical doctors with pending visa or green card applications, possibly allowing Alghoula\u2019s case to move forward. It\u2019s a move physicians organizations and immigration attorneys had sought for months, citing widespread shortages and a high proportion of foreign-trained doctors, who disproportionately work in underserved areas, according to the National Library of Medicine.<\/p>\n

The lack of doctors is top of mind for Alghoula, a pulmonologist and Intensive Care Unit doctor who serves a mostly rural population spanning parts of Indiana, Illinois and Kentucky.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is about four to five months wait to get the pulmonologist here,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Still, applicants and immigration attorneys say its unclear how big a difference the exemption will make. The change means doctors can have their cases reviewed, but it doesn\u2019t guarantee their green cards or visas will be renewed. It is also unclear whether U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will be able to process those applications in time to meet immigration deadlines like Alghoula\u2019s.<\/p>\n

Alghoula said he doesn\u2019t trust the administration will approve him due to numerous stories about immigrants being detained at appointments to renew their paperwork like the one he has next month.<\/p>

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\u201cI\u2019m still scared to go to my interview,\u201d said Alghoula, who has lived in the U.S. since 2016.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the pause remains in affect for thousands of others including researchers and entrepreneurs from 39 countries including Iran, Afghanistan and Venezuela. While they\u2019re on hold, many can\u2019t legally work, get health insurance or a driver\u2019s license. If they leave the U.S., they won\u2019t be let back in.<\/p>\n

Immigrants unable to work or see family<\/h4>\n

The Trump administration decided last year to stop reviewing green card and visa applications for people from a list of countries deemed high-risk and this year stopped reviewing visa applications for citizens of more than 75 countries over concerns they would seek public assistance. The moves came amid the U.S. government\u2019s broader crackdown on immigrants.<\/p>\n

The pause followed the shooting of two National Guard troops by an Afghan citizen, which the administration said highlighted \u201cwhat a lack of screening, vetting, and prioritizing expedient adjudications can do to the American people.\u201d<\/p>

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The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees immigration officials, didn\u2019t answer questions about the pause or recent changes to exempt physicians but said in an email it wants to ensure applicants are properly screened after determining the prior administration failed to do so.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are lots of bans and lots of pauses that are happening right now,\u201d said Greg Siskind, an immigration attorney based in Memphis, Tennessee. \u201cIt is all about making life miserable for people who are here legally so they will choose other countries.\u201d<\/p>

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It isn\u2019t clear how many doctors have been affected by the pause, according to a spokesperson for the American Academy of Family Physicians, who said several doctors have reached out to the organization asking for help.<\/p>\n