{
  "$type": "site.standard.document",
  "bskyPostRef": {
    "cid": "bafyreicy3tqdw2ojgfeeocsgkoah5ngkbuyahmqmqgmiyzrjghtys2l6gm",
    "uri": "at://did:plc:neqfhinxgjyy6qagpbcb6wfe/app.bsky.feed.post/3mminnw4tn5u2"
  },
  "coverImage": {
    "$type": "blob",
    "ref": {
      "$link": "bafkreihgz64vqaolw7e7me6p4wqjqctazzr3hco2dedt4tv6uheih6a62m"
    },
    "mimeType": "image/webp",
    "size": 86988
  },
  "path": "/partner/trump-green-card-apply-home-country",
  "publishedAt": "2026-05-23T04:05:24.000Z",
  "site": "https://nukta.com",
  "textContent": "\n\n\n\nThe Trump administration announced Friday that most foreigners seeking a green card granting permanent U.S. residency must return to their home countries to apply, in a sweeping change to the immigration process.\n\nThe rule affects students, temporary workers, and tourists who had previously been able to apply for permanent residency while remaining in the United States.\n\n### What does the new US green card rule require?\n\nU.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services spokesman Zach Kahler said the rule was straightforward: \"From now on, an alien who is in the U.S. temporarily and wants a green card must return to their home country to apply, except in extraordinary circumstances.\"\n\nGreen card applications will now be handled by the State Department at U.S. consular offices abroad. The United States grants more than 1 million green cards each year, and up until now, more than half of the applicants were already in the country, according to The Washington Post.\n\n### Why is the Trump administration changing the green card process?\n\nThe administration argues that temporary nonimmigrant visas were never intended to serve as the first step in a permanent residency application.\n\n\"Our system is designed for them to leave when their visit is over,\" Kahler said. He added that requiring applicants to apply from abroad \"reduces the need to find and remove those who decide to slip into the shadows and remain in the U.S. illegally after being denied residency.\"\n\nThe policy is part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to cut overall legal immigration numbers.\n\n### Who is affected by the new green card rule?\n\n###\n\nThe rule applies to nonimmigrants already in the U.S., including students, temporary workers, and people on tourist visas. Exceptions exist for \"extraordinary circumstances,\" though the bar is expected to be set high.\n\nImmigration attorneys and policy experts have warned that the change creates severe hurdles, particularly for workers on employment visas who cannot abandon their jobs overseas and for applicants from countries without functioning U.S. diplomatic missions. Extended family separations and lengthy disruptions are anticipated.\n\n### How does this fit into Trump's broader immigration agenda?\n\n##\n\nTrump campaigned for the White House on a pledge to expel millions of undocumented migrants, and his administration has closed several legal pathways to U.S. residency since taking office.\n\nThe green card rule is seen as part of a broader policy objective aimed at slashing overall legal immigration and encouraging what critics have described as \"self-deportation\" among those already in the country legally. The administration has framed the change as enforcing immigration law as it was originally intended.",
  "title": "US Green Card seekers must now apply from home countries"
}