This Week in U.S. Immigration (July 11): Policy Shifts & Economic Impacts

U.S. immigration policy weathered some seismic shifts in 2025, with big headline-making legal rulings, ambitious congressional efforts, and overwhelming economic implications. The events of this week underscore the fact that immigration in America has only grown more murky as issues pertaining to it come to the fore, with federal courts, Congress, and the executive branch playing key roles in shaping the destinies of millions of people. These changes can be felt in lawsuits over who can become U.S. citizens (at birth), record-long queues filled with green card applicants, and the rescission of humanitarian protections, including those given to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. In this article, we summarise the week with the most important occurrences in the field of immigration, discussing what this news can tell us about the country and people living in it.

Judge Hinder's Trump's No Birthright Order

The Trump administration's attempt to end birthright citizenship of children born in the U.S. to illegal immigrants and international students on a student visa was stopped by the administrative action of a federal judge. It revives a bitter court fight over the 14th Amendment that has assured citizenship to all who are born within the boundaries of this country.

• Background: An executive order by the Trump administration attempted to reinterpret the 14th Amendment, not counting children of undocumented immigrants and some of the visa holders as subjects of automatic citizenship.

• The Legal Challenge: The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed a class-action suit, stating that the order is against the constitutional protection.

• The Ruling of the Court: The portion of the nationwide injunction enforced by the judge covers the babies conceived after February 20, 2025. The order is, however, stayed for seven days, and the administration has a chance to appeal.

• Importance: This is currently one of the small samples of general legal remedies since the Supreme Court restricted the application of the nationwide injunction. The decision will have a precedent on future challenges of executive actions regarding immigration.

Also Read: US Immigration Backlog Hits All-Time High: 11.3 Million Cases Pending

“Big Beautiful Bill” Dramatically Expands Immigration Enforcement

President Trump signed on July 4 a sweeping tax cut and spending bill, the so-called Big Beautiful Bill, which includes $170 billion as the new appropriation to immigration enforcement, detention, and border security.

Key Provisions

1. Funding Allocations: 45 billion for ICE detention centres and border wall construction, getting money is allotted at $46.5 billion.

2. Fee Increases: Higher fees imposed on asylum, parole, and appeals, some of them up by 700 per cent

3. Restrictions within social programs: Immigration restrictions on health care and food aid on millions of immigrant and mixed-status families

Proponents and Opponents

• Proponents claim that the bill will give further momentum to enforcement, prevent illegal immigration, and seal the border.

• Opponents of the bill caution that the bill's fees would bar vulnerable immigrants' access to due process and that they will be damaging to children and families and limit enrolment in social programs.

• Implementation Problems: However, experts warn that implementation could be stalled due to capacity problems within the agency, as well as immigration court backlogs, leaving thousands of people stranded in the legal pipeline.

Revocation of TPS on Hondurans and Nicaraguans

The Trump administration publicly stated that more than 70,000 immigrants from Honduras and Nicaragua can no longer have Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which will expire in September 2025.

So what is TPS?

TPS offers a temporary immigration status and permission to work to nationals of countries experiencing armed conflict, natural disasters, or other exceptional circumstances.

Policy Shift

• Reason: Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem also said that things in both countries have been better, so TPS is no longer necessary.

• Consequence: TPS holders have been residing in the U.S. since the 1990s, established families of their own, and were contributing to local economies.

• Risks: These people will be deported, separated from their families, and those who will remain in the country will endure the costs of economic hardship without another legal status to live on. The critics claim that the action disregards persistent instability and humanitarian requirements in Honduras and Nicaragua.

Also Read: US Introduces New $250 Visa Integrity Fee for Nonimmigrant Visas

Green Card Replacement Wait Times Surge Nearly 1,000%

The recent statistics issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) through the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) demonstrate an all-time increase in the backlog of green card renewals and replacements (Form I-90).

Part by the Numbers

• Wait Time Jump: The median time it takes to process a request rose to more than eight months in January to March 2025 up to an estimated result of less than one month.

• Backlog: There were more than 356,000 cases pending at the close of Q2 FY2025.

• Estimates: The USCIS gives a prediction that 80 per cent of replacements of green cards may take more than a year to process.

Causes and Consequences

• Rising Applications: USCIS is experiencing heavy application loads and backlogs that are overworking the department.

• Policy Effects: The increased enforcement by the Trump administration has helped delay the system since more legal permanent residents become trapped in a bureaucratic purgatory.

• Real-World Consequences: The Real-World Consequences of this policy include a huge number of green card holders getting robbed of any evidence of their legal status, leading to their inability to access services, travel, or work.

Economic Risks from a Shrinking Immigrant Workforce

In a recent jobs report, the threat of decreasing immigration and participation by the labour force in U.S. economic growth has been highlighted.

Key Findings

• Labour Force Plunge: There is a drop of more than 735,000 in the foreign-born workers between January 2025 and now.

• Policy Drivers: According to the analysis given by experts, restrictive immigration policies such as mass deportations, ending parole, and refusing refugees cite them as the major policy drivers. An example includes the Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

• Economic Considerations: The industry has been particularly affected by an extreme loss of staff and the loss of employment authorisations in areas such as the healthcare industry.

Trends in Wage and Growth

• Wage Growth: Despite the arguments that you increase the wage by expelling immigrant workers, the studies indicate a decrease in the rate of wage growth in the sectors that used to employ the immigrant labour force.

• Long Term Risks: The health of the U.S. economy, including its capacity to expand and support an increasingly ageing population, is in danger in case the existing trend continues.

Also Read: Canada’s New PR Pathway for Refugees & Displaced Talent

Policy Changes: What’s Next for Immigrants and Advocates?

As policies shift so fast, they leave immigrants, their families, and the supporting organisations in doubt. The coming months are likely to be characterised by legal challenges, legislative battles, and delays on administrative levels.

• Legal Uncertainty: Birthright citizenship and TPS remain in the hands of legal proceedings and potential legislative decisions in the Congress.

• Operational Barriers: New charges, accessibility of fewer accessible social programs, and longer waiting times will complicate the system, and the immigrants will find it tough to deal with the system.

• Advocacy and Support: The still-critical role of organisations such as Boundless and the ACLU consists of education and supporting individuals of the impacted communities.

Conclusion

The immigration events of this week demonstrate that the effects of the policy choices can be drastic and have sweeping consequences on the individuals, their families, and society in general. With the courts struggling over constitutional rights, contentious laws redefining how they should be policed, and bureaucratic bottlenecks aggravating the agitations of millions, the pressure has never been greater on the law enforcers. The next months will become decisive regarding how important it is that the immigration system of America can provide a balance between security, justice, and humanity in times of rapid development.

To learn more about the latest immigration news, contact TerraTern right away!