D.C. Circuit Allows Trump Administration to Accelerate Deportations of Paroled Migrants

A three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals lifted a district court injunction, permitting the Department of Homeland Security to use expedited removal for migrants who entered under the previous administration’s parole program.

In a per curiam opinion, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a lower-court order that had prevented the Department of Homeland Security from employing expedited removal against migrants who were paroled into the United States during the prior administration. The three-judge panel—Chief Judge Sri Srinivasan, Judge Neomi Rao and Judge Justin Walker—determined that the challengers did not have the requisite standing, and therefore nullified the August 2025 injunction issued by Judge Jia Cobb.

DHS General Counsel James Percival praised the decision, emphasizing the agency’s program that offers a $2,600 payment and a complimentary flight home for those who choose to leave voluntarily. The court’s action removes a key legal obstacle to the Trump administration’s effort to hasten deportations of groups such as Afghans, Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, Ukrainians and Venezuelans who entered under the parole scheme. This judgment builds on a June ruling that also struck down a separate injunction and comes shortly after the Supreme Court supported the administration’s move to end Temporary Protected Status for hundreds of thousands of non-citizens.