Federal Appeals Court Temporarily Halts Reopening of Diversity Visa Lottery

A federal appeals court has temporarily blocked an order requiring the Trump administration to reopen the Diversity Visa lottery, allowing the federal government to keep the program paused while it pursues an appeal. A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted the government's emergency request to stay a preliminary injunction on Thursday. The lower court ruling would have forced the State Department to open registration for the fiscal year 2027 Diversity Visa Program by Sunday, November 1.

The legal battle began when Red Eagle Law, a California-based immigration law firm representing Diversity Visa selectees, sued Secretary of State Marco Rubio in August over the State Department's failure to open registration for the fiscal year 2027 program. The appeals court's recent decision does not resolve the underlying appeal but puts the lower court's order on hold while the legal process moves forward. Curtis Morrison, the owner of Red Eagle, stated that the firm plans to move forward quickly with other litigation to challenge the agency's failure to carry out the program.

The panel determined that the government was likely to prevail in the case, noting that the law firm's financial interest in representing applicants was not sufficiently connected to the immigration program. The court stated in its ruling, "We do not endorse the Department's failure to open the lottery registration period. Nevertheless, Red Eagle has not shown a likelihood of success on the merits because it is not within the zone of interests of the statute and does not have a cause of action." Judge N. Randy Smith argued separately that the firm also lacked constitutional standing.

The Diversity Visa Program, commonly known as the green card lottery, allocates up to 55,000 visas annually to individuals from countries with historically low rates of immigration to the United States. Established by the Immigration Act of 1990 and signed by former President George H.W. Bush, the permanent program was designed to encourage immigration from underrepresented nations. The appellate court noted that the State Department had failed without explanation to open the registration period for fiscal 2027, effectively canceling the program for that cycle.

The suspension of the lottery registration carries significant consequences for thousands of individuals worldwide who rely on the program as a legal pathway to permanent residency in the United States. Meanwhile, the broader legal landscape surrounding green cards and foreign workers continues to shift under the Trump administration. Immigration policies have increasingly focused on tightening legal entry requirements, expanding scrutiny of applicants through public charge tests, and implementing higher fees for various immigration benefits and work programs.

As the legal proceedings continue, Red Eagle Law indicated it is seeking alternative plaintiffs to further challenge the administration's policies. The 9th Circuit announced that its clerk would issue a formal briefing schedule for the ongoing appeal as the case develops.