The Trump administration can pause refugee resettlement efforts while litigation over the freeze plays out in court, a federal U.S. appeals court said on Tuesday.
Refugees conditionally approved for entry by January 20 will be exempt from the pause, a panel of three judges on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said.
In late February, a Seattle-based federal judge temporarily blocked Trump's refugee program freeze. The same judge on Monday ordered the Trump administration to stop terminating contracts with groups that assist with refugee resettlement and restore cancelled agreements.
Former President Joe Biden, a Democrat, gradually increased refugee admissions during his four-year term, accepting 100,000 in fiscal 2024.
Another 100,000 refugees abroad had been fully vetted and ready to travel to the U.S. as of mid-January, a senior Biden administration official told Reuters at the time.
