A federal court in Virginia has ruled against the State Department, declaring that executive travel ban policies cannot be used to block the spouses and children of Afghan asylees from obtaining travel approval to join their families in the United States.
In an order issued July 29, 2026, Judge Anthony J. Trenga of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia granted summary judgment to the plaintiffs in A.A. v. United States Department of State. The court vacated the government policy applying Presidential Proclamations 10949 and 10998 to “follow-to-join” asylees, ruling the practice unlawful under the Administrative Procedure Act.
Under the terms of the order, federal officials must issue entry documents, known as boarding foils, to five specific family members in the lawsuit within 15 days. The court also directed the State Department to individually re-examine the travel applications of two additional relatives within 30 days without applying the contested proclamations.
The court will retain jurisdiction over the case until all affected family members arrive in the U.S., requiring the government and plaintiffs to submit joint status updates every 14 days.
Global Refuge, a major U.S. refugee resettlement and immigration services organization, welcomed the ruling. Thousands of Afghan allies who supported U.S. operations were resettled following the August 2021 military withdrawal, though many remain separated from immediate family members stuck abroad.
“Afghans who supported the U.S. mission and won protection here have waited years to bring their spouses and children to safety,” said Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, President and CEO of Global Refuge. “This ruling made clear what the travel ban’s own text already said: its restrictions were never meant to reach asylees, or the family members our laws entitle them to bring to safety. Fortunately, the court saw this case for what it is: families who simply want to be whole again.”
Resettlement advocates have pointed out that family members remaining in region face safety risks during extended processing delays, while relatives inside the U.S. face prolonged distress.
“Family reunification is a promise this country has kept for generations, written into our laws precisely because no one should have to choose between their own safety and their children’s,” Vignarajah said. “This ruling keeps that promise for a handful of families, and we urge the administration to extend it to the many still waiting.”
Following the court’s decision, Global Refuge called on federal agencies to swiftly process the required entry papers. The group also urged Congress to pass an explicit statutory exemption to shield all vetted Afghan allies—including those applying through the Special Immigrant Visa program and the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program—from travel ban restrictions.
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