Trump Admin Unlawfully Revoked Migrant Status Granted via Biden-era App: Judge

A Federal judge on Tuesday ordered President Donald Trump’s administration to reverse the termination of the legal status of thousands of migrants who had been permitted to temporarily reside in the United States after using an appointment app introduced under former President Joe Biden.

US District Judge Allison Burroughs in Boston ruled that the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) acted unlawfully in April 2025 when it sent mass emails to many of the more than 900,000 individuals who had entered the country using the CBP One app, informing them that it was “time for you to leave the United States.”

Skye Perryman, whose legal group Democracy Forward brought the challenge, welcomed the ruling, stating that the court had rejected an attempt to “erase lawful status for hundreds of thousands of people with the click of a button.”

A DHS spokesperson criticised the decision as “blatant judicial activism” that interfered with the administration’s authority to determine who may remain in the United States.

“Cancelling these paroles is a promise kept to the American people to secure our borders and protect our national security,” the spokesperson said.

The ruling arose from a class-action lawsuit filed in August by three individuals from Venezuela, Cuba and Haiti, along with the advocacy group Venezuelan Association of Massachusetts. They argued that the Trump administration’s actions amounted to an abrupt and unlawful move to strip migrants of their parole status and work authorisation.

Those affected had generally been granted two-year periods of humanitarian parole after using the CBP One app to schedule appointments with US Customs and Border Protection at the US–Mexico border.

The Biden administration had, from 2023, required many asylum seekers to use the app in an effort to reduce disorder at the border.

Shortly after returning to office in January 2025, Trump moved to shut down the app as part of a broader push to implement stricter immigration controls and mass deportations.

In April 2025, many non-citizens who had received parole through the CBP One process were emailed by DHS stating that their parole had been terminated and instructing them to leave the country immediately.

Judge Burroughs found that DHS failed to comply with procedural requirements, including the obligation to provide a record showing that an official determination had been made that the purpose of parole had been fulfilled.

“Accordingly, the parole terminations exceeded the agency’s statutory authority and contradicted the procedures set forth in its own regulations,” she wrote.

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