NATIONAL IMMIGRATION PROJECT OF THE NATIONAL LAWYERS GUILD v. U.S. CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION SERVICES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, 22-cv-3634 (D.D.C.)
The terrorism-related inadmissibility grounds (TRIG) are provisions of U.S. immigration law that can prevent noncitizens from obtaining visas, green cards, and other immigration benefits, or from entering the United States altogether. Advocates have long raised concerns about how the government applies these provisions, particularly to applicants from predominantly Muslim countries.
The National Immigration Project filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Department of State after both agencies missed their deadline to respond to records requests. The National Immigration Project had asked each agency for data on how it applies the terrorism bars and processes immigration benefits for applicants from predominantly Muslim countries, information needed to understand the long-term effects of past executive orders targeting Muslim immigration and how the bars are applied today.