Original Date Announced

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a guidance document for purposes of a government shutdown estimating the number of employees who would be exempt ("[f]unctions and activities funded by appropriations that have neither lapsed nor been exhausted") or excepted ("[f]unctions and activities funded by lapsed . . . or exhausted appropriations which may nonetheless continue because the function or activity by law may continue to be performed during a lapse in appropriations"). DHS made the following estimates of employees with immigration-related functions who would be exempt or excepted: 63,243 out of 67,792 Customs and Border Protection (CBP) employees (~93%), 19,626 out of 21,028 Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) employees (~93%), and 21,568 out of 22,408 U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) employees (~96%).

New enforcement agents hired under the recent reconciliation legislation will still receive pay during the shutdown.

Trump 2.0 [ID #1996]

Subsequent Trump and Court Action

2025.09.29 DOJ - Fiscal Year 2026 Contingency Plan

A Department of Justice (DOJ) memo laying out its contingency plan during a lapse in appropriations stipulates that the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) will continue to operate during a government shutdown. EOIR staff needed to "process immigration cases and appeals involving detained respondents" will continue to work, while "[n]on-court employees, including general counsel, policy and human relations employees," will be reduced to the "minimum necessary." The memo states that EOIR operations are excepted from Antideficiency Act restrictions and may continue during a lapse in appropriations because President Trump declared a national emergency due to the threat that "illegal immigration" poses to "national security and [the] economy" and because some EOIR operations are "necessary to protect life and property."

Subsequent Trump and Court Action

2025.10.02 USCIS Dir. Edlow - X thread on shutdown impacts on visa processing

USCIS Director Joseph B. Edlow wrote a thread on X stating that "[f]or the duration of this shutdown USCIS will ensure available resources focus on reviewing cases with national security concerns, vetting immigration backlogs to ID threats, & referring all threats to @ICEgov. Unfortunately, this reprioritization may impact processing times. Public facing interactions such as interviews, naturalization ceremonies, and contact center responses may also be delayed."

Subsequent Trump and Court Action

USCIS Policy Manual Vol 2 Part A Chapter 4 - Extension of Stay, Change of Status, and Extension of Petition Validity

USCIS has announced that it will exercise its discretion to excuse delays in filing petitions for renewals of nonimmigrant visas in situations where the delay was caused by the government shutdown. Specifically, in situations "[w]here the primary reason for the late filing is the inability to obtain a certified labor condition application or temporary labor certification due to a lapse in government funding supporting those adjudications," USCIS may consider it an extraordinary circumstance beyond the petitioner's control. This policy will impact nonimmigrant visa holders, including individuals with H-1B, H-2A, or H-2B visas.