Just have a minute? Here are the top stories you need to know about immigration. This summary was featured in Documented’s Early Arrival newsletter. You can subscribe to receive it in your inbox three times per week here.
Washington D.C.
DHS pauses immigration applications for an additional 20 countries:
USCIS said it would pause the review of all pending applications for visas, green cards, citizenship or asylum from an additional list of countries, mostly in Africa. –NPR
U.S. mandates more foreign travelers to pay $15,000 visa bond deposits:
Visitors from 13 countries, mostly in Africa, will now be required to post the bonds. People from countries that are part of the visa waiver program are exempt. –The Washington Post
Hundreds of judges reject Trump’s mandatory detention policy, with no end in sight:
Judges have ruled against the administration in more than 1,600 cases in its effort to expand its so-called “mandatory detention” policy. –Politico
Fate of 350,000 Haitians at stake as court weighs Temporary Protected Status:
A federal judge questioned whether the Trump administration appropriately reviewed safety conditions in Haiti before ending protections for people from the Caribbean nation. —The New York Times.
New York
Mamdani orders end to migrant shelters:
Under a plan to come by mid-February, the tens of thousands of migrants living in what critics have called a “shadow system” will likely remain in the city’s homeless shelters. –THE CITY
Trump admin. to freeze $10 billion in social programs to New York and other Democratic states:
The administration is targeting the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, the Child Care and Development Fund and the Social Services Block Grant program. –THE CITY
Mamdani diversity chief cherry-picked numbers, MTA watchdog found:
Adams holdover Michael Garner ran a program nurturing minority businesses, but a report he oversaw hyping its success excluded 80% of the program’s participants, according to the MTA’s inspector general. –THE CITY
Around the U.S.
DHS deploys 2,000 federal agents to Minneapolis area to carry out ‘largest immigration operation ever’:
The Trump administration has launched its largest immigration enforcement operation, with plans to deploy up to 2,000 federal agents to the Minneapolis area. –The Washington Post
Deaths of Asian immigrants in ICE custody reveal a community under threat:
A 2025 survey reported that 63% of Asian immigrants now feel unsafe in America because of their race. –The Los Angeles Times
Immigrants seek divine protection in ICE raids era:
Immigrants are turning to traditional Catholic and unofficial folk saints for protection and courage in a political climate of mass deportations where they often feel hopeless. –Axios
ICE arrests have increased in Utah under Trump:
A majority of those arrested by ICE in Utah have been people with criminal convictions — but a growing share don’t have criminal records. –Utah News Dispatch
Minnesota patient confronted by immigration agents who waited 24 hours at bedside, advocates say
The patient was reportedly shackled to their hospital bed and confronted by ICE, raising concerns about hospitals’ policies on immigration enforcement. –Sahan Journal
