NAIROBI, Kenya — Kenyans selected in the US Diversity Visa programme have received a temporary legal reprieve after a federal court intervened in policies that had disrupted the processing of Diversity Visa applications.
The ruling, issued on August 28, 2026, by the US District Court for the Northern District of California, came in a case brought by Diversity Visa applicants challenging measures introduced by the Trump administration.
Judge Edward Davila certified classes of affected applicants and temporarily vacated three government policies that had interfered with the Diversity Visa programme, including a December 2025 US Citizenship and Immigration Services policy that placed a hold on pending adjustment-of-status applications for DV applicants.
The court also addressed a State Department policy that had paused Diversity Visa issuance, as well as a separate policy affecting immigrant visa applicants from 75 countries.
The ruling represented a legal victory for Diversity Visa applicants, but it has not resulted in the immediate resumption of visa issuance.
Following the court order, the US Department of State said the December 2025 pause on Diversity Visa issuance was no longer in effect.
However, the department immediately announced a new pause on the issuance of all Diversity Visas while it conducts a review of the programme’s screening and vetting procedures.
The State Department said the review was prompted by national security and public safety concerns following the shooting at Brown University and the killing of an MIT professor. According to the department, the suspect in those incidents had previously entered the United States through the Diversity Visa programme.
The review is intended to identify possible weaknesses in the programme’s vetting procedures, including the ability to establish applicants’ identities, determine their eligibility and assess potential national security or public safety risks.
Importantly, the latest pause does not prevent DV applicants from continuing with parts of their immigration process.
The State Department says applicants may still submit visa applications and attend scheduled interviews, and existing appointments will generally continue rather than being cancelled or rescheduled.
However, no Diversity Visas will be issued while the latest pause remains in effect, and the department says there are currently no exceptions.
Why the ruling matters to Kenyans
The development is particularly significant for Kenyans selected under the DV-2026 programme, which provides eligible applicants from countries with historically low levels of immigration to the US with an opportunity to apply for permanent residence.
The US Department of State says DV-2026 selectees must obtain their visas or complete adjustment of status by September 30, 2026. No DV-2026 visas can be issued after the end of the fiscal year, and available visa numbers could also be exhausted before the deadline.
For applicants processing their cases outside the United States, the process generally involves submitting the DS-260 immigrant visa application, completing the required documentation and, where scheduled, attending an interview and medical examination.
The court’s intervention therefore offers an important legal development for applicants whose cases were affected by the earlier policies, but it does not by itself guarantee that they will receive visas before the September deadline.
September 30 deadline looms
The timing of the latest developments has increased pressure on DV-2026 selectees.
Under US immigration law, eligibility under the Diversity Visa programme lasts only for the fiscal year in which an applicant is selected. For DV-2026, that period ends on September 30, 2026.
The State Department has warned that applicants should not assume visas will remain available until the final day of the fiscal year because the annual allocation can be exhausted earlier.
This means applicants whose cases remain unresolved as the new issuance pause continues face a narrowing window in which their cases can be completed.
Selection in the Diversity Visa lottery also does not guarantee a visa. Applicants must still satisfy all eligibility and admissibility requirements and complete the required immigration procedures before a visa can be issued.
Court victory but uncertainty remains
The August 28 ruling has therefore produced a mixed outcome for Diversity Visa applicants.
On one hand, the court has blocked key policies that applicants argued unlawfully disrupted the programme.
On the other, the State Department’s subsequent decision to halt all DV issuances means applicants remain unable to receive their visas while the new vetting review is underway.
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The department has not cancelled scheduled interviews as a general rule, meaning applicants are still being encouraged to continue with the parts of the process that remain available.
For Kenyan DV-2026 selectees, the immediate priority is therefore to keep their cases moving, attend scheduled appointments and monitor official US government announcements as the September 30 deadline approaches.
The court battle over the Diversity Visa programme is continuing, leaving applicants facing a race against time as they wait for clarity on whether visa issuance will resume before the fiscal year closes.
