19 May May Visa Bulletin Includes Advances in Various Immigrant Visa Categories, Possible Retrogression for India EB-5 Unreserved Category
At a glance: Five developments from the past four weeks matter most for UK and Irish businesses with people moving or planning to move to the US: the May Visa Bulletin signals possible EB-5 retrogression for India; only one Trump Gold Card has been approved despite earlier sales claims; a federal court has ordered USCIS to resume processing for some applicants from restricted countries; enhanced security vetting is causing fresh adjudication delays; and the adjudication hold on foreign physicians has been quietly lifted.
The Department of State’s Visa Bulletin for May includes several updates:
- Immigrant visa issuance rates for people from certain countries have decreased. Consequently, to make visas available to prospective immigrants from other countries so they can use immigrant visa numbers that are available in Fiscal Year (FY) 2026, dates for filing and final action dates have been advanced across various immigrant visa categories. The bulletin notes that retrogression may be necessary later in the fiscal year to keep issuances within annual limits.
- Sufficient demand and increased number use by India in the EB-5 unreserved visa categories may make it necessary to retrogress the final action date or make the category unavailable to hold number use within the maximum allowed under the FY 2026 annual limit.
Trump Gold Card: Amid Contradictory Statements, Just One Approved So Far
On April 23, 2026, at a hearing before the House of Representatives’ Appropriations Committee, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said that just one Trump Gold Card, under an executive order issued in September 2025, has been approved so far, but that “there are hundreds in the queue that they are going through.”
According to its website, the Trump Gold Card allows an individual to immigrate into the United States by paying $1 million, plus a nonrefundable $15,000 processing fee. A corporation can pay $2 million per employee plus a 1 percent annual maintenance fee. In December 2025, when the card was launched, Mr. Lutnick said that $1.3 billion in Gold Cards had been sold in just a few days. Previously, he said on the “All-In Podcast” on March 20, 2025, that “yesterday, I sold a thousand” of the cards before the program officially launched. At a cabinet meeting last year, Mr. Lutnick predicted that $1 trillion would be raised under the program.
The Trump Gold Card website also mentions a future Trump Platinum Card, which would allow an individual to pay $5 million (plus a $15,000 processing fee) to spend up to 270 days in the United States without being subject to U.S. taxes on any non-U.S. income.
It is unclear how the proceeds from the cards will be spent. At the hearing, Mr. Lutnick said, “That will be determined by the administration, and its terms are for the betterment of the United States of America.”
USCIS Ordered to Resume Processing for Certain ‘Restricted’ Countries’ Applicants
On April 30, 2026, a federal court in Massachusetts issued a significant ruling ordering the U.S. government to lift its blanket hold on certain U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) immigration applications for approximately 200 plaintiffs from specific countries. The court found that two key USCIS policies, which have been responsible for freezing cases for months, are likely unlawful. While this marks an important legal victory, the decision currently applies only to the individuals involved in the case. Thousands of other applicants remain subject to these policies and may need to take additional steps to obtain relief.
The court found that:
- USCIS likely does not have the authority to freeze applications indefinitely based on nationality;
- Using nationality as a negative factor is likely inconsistent with immigration law;
- The government did not follow proper rulemaking procedures before implementing these policies; and
- Applicants suffered real and immediate harm, including:
- Loss of work authorization
- Disruption of lawful status
- Financial and personal hardship
The decision signals the type of relief other litigants may be able to pursue through similar lawsuits. The court held that:
- USCIS must resume processing applications for certain plaintiffs;
- USCIS must stop applying these policies to those individuals; and
- The court will determine whether additional plaintiffs are also entitled to relief.
The affected countries include Afghanistan, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burma (Myanmar), Burundi, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville (Republic of the Congo), Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Dominica, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Gabon, The Gambia, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Palestinian Authority (those using P.A.-issued documents), Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, Yemen, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Enhanced Security Vetting Causes Adjudications Pause, Coinciding With New RFE Trends
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has begun implementing enhanced security vetting procedures that are expected to delay certain pending immigration benefit adjudications. In addition, more types of petitions and applications will require fingerprint-based background checks.
These changes follow Executive Order 14385, issued on February 6, 2026, which directs the Attorney General to provide the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with access to criminal history record information, maintained by the Department of Justice for DHS screening and vetting purposes, to the maximum extent permitted by law.
USCIS has not yet issued detailed public guidance explaining how the new process will be applied across all case types, but recent internal guidance and public reporting indicate that, effective April 27, 2026, USCIS began receiving enhanced criminal history record information for fingerprint-based background checks submitted through the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) “Next Generation Identification (NGI)” system. According to reporting on the internal guidance, USCIS officers have been directed not to approve certain pending cases until the enhanced checks have been completed, and to resubmit fingerprint-based screenings for any application or petition where the FBI information was received before April 27, 2026.
The most immediate impact appears to be on pending applications and petitions that require fingerprint-based background checks. These commonly include adjustment of status, naturalization, asylum-related filings, and certain employment authorization applications. The new process has coincided with emerging trends in requests for evidence involving biometrics in certain employment-based matters.
USCIS Lifts Adjudication Hold for Foreign Physicians
According to reports, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has quietly updated its enhanced screening and vetting policy to lift the adjudication hold for foreign national physicians. The update applies only to cases pending or filed with USCIS and does not affect visa applications processed abroad through the Department of State.
Medical organizations lobbied for a national interest exemption from the hold, outlining the serious public health consequences and noting that 23% of licensed physicians in the United States are foreign-trained and 64% of foreign-trained physicians practice in medically underserved areas or health professional shortage areas. The prolonged adjudication hold has resulted in physicians losing their status or work authorization, thereby rendering them unable to provide much needed medical services to U.S. patients.
Other vetting measures remain in effect. Employers and physicians with pending cases should monitor their case status online for updates or requests for evidence and prepare for potential biometrics appointments or re-interviews.
This is posting is for informational purposes and is not intended as legal advice. If you require further assistance or advice relating to the above, please contact our Partner, Catherine Betancourt at catherine@flynnhodkinson.com.
1. Does the federal court ruling on USCIS application freezes apply to UK or Irish nationals?
No. Neither the UK nor Ireland is on the list of affected countries. However, dual nationals or employees holding passports from listed countries may benefit, and the ruling sets a precedent that may shape future litigation.
2. Will the May 2026 Visa Bulletin retrogression affect Irish or British EB-5 applicants?
The current retrogression risk is specific to applicants from India. Irish and British EB-5 applicants are not directly affected by the May bulletin changes, though the broader fiscal-year cap dynamics remain worth monitoring.
3. How much will USCIS enhanced security vetting delay my employee's case?
USCIS has not issued public guidance on expected processing times. The delays are most pronounced for adjustment of status, naturalisation, asylum-related filings, and certain employment authorisation applications. Build additional buffer into start dates for any employee with a pending case touching these categories.
4. Is the Trump Gold Card a viable route for my international hires or investors?
Approval rates are currently very low, only one approval has been confirmed publicly as of April 2026. For UK nationals, the E-2 Treaty Investor route and EB-5 remain more legally settled and operationally proven options.
5. Does the foreign physician adjudication hold lift apply to doctors applying from outside the US?
No. The lift applies only to cases pending with USCIS. Visa applications processed at US embassies and consulates abroad remain subject to the broader enhanced vetting measures.
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