U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem announced that the administration has ordered a suspension of the Green Card lottery program due to national security concerns.
Noem stated that the decision was made following direct instructions from President Donald Trump. She stated that the program had allowed individuals who later became involved in violent crimes to enter the United States.
In a post on social media, Noem referred specifically to a shooting incident at Brown University, claiming that the suspect, identified as Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, had entered the U.S. after obtaining permanent residency through the Green Card program in 2017. “The individual responsible for the Brown University shooting received a Green Card in 2017. This despicable person should never have been allowed to enter our country,” Noem wrote.
Media reports indicate that nearly 20 million people applied for the Green Card lottery program in 2025, emphasizing its scale and global reach. The program, officially known as the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, has historically been promoting immigration from countries with lower rates of migration to the United States.
As of now, no further details have been released regarding the duration of the suspension or whether existing applications will be affected. The Department of Homeland Security has not published formal documentation outlining the legal or procedural framework for the halt.
The announcement has already sparked debate among immigration advocates and policy analysts who note that the Green Card lottery has long been a cornerstone of the U.S. diversity-based immigration policy.
