(UNITED STATES) Non-detained immigration court hearings across the United States slowed sharply during the 2025 government shutdown, as the courts that handle those cases relied on funding that lapsed when Congress failed to pass a spending bill. Detained cases largely continued, but non-detained hearings were mostly paused or pushed to later dates, adding fresh delay to an already overwhelmed system.
The immediate effect was more uncertainty for people waiting years for a decision, lawyers said, and a widening backlog that has grown to historic levels. While courtrooms for detained immigrants stayed active to avoid keeping people in custody longer without a hearing, staff shortages and limited support even in those proceedings meant fewer decisions each day.
Why non-detained dockets stopped
The Executive Office for Immigration Review, or EOIR (Executive Office for Immigration Review, or EOIR), which runs the immigration court system, depends on congressional appropriations and cannot fully operate during a funding lapse. That structure drove the pause for non-detained dockets in most courts, echoing the pattern seen during the 2019 shutdown but at a time when the system is carrying a heavier load.
Key numbers:
– The national backlog has grown from about 1.3 million cases in 2020 to more than 3.7 million by the end of 2024.
– Shutdown delays are expected to push that number even higher.
– Analysis by VisaVerge.com noted the shutdown mirrored earlier interruptions but hit a far larger, more fragile docket this time.
Impact on hearings and people
In many cities, judges and court staff prioritized people held in detention to protect due process for those who cannot leave custody. That choice, however, did not ease pressure on the broader backlog.
- Non-detained hearings were mostly suspended or rescheduled, disrupting master calendar and individual merits hearings.
- Families with school-age children, workers with pending relief claims, and long-time residents seeking closure were told to wait for new notices that could be months or even years away.
- For many people already facing average wait times of roughly 1.7 to 3.9 years, any additional delay can push a final decision out of reach for a long stretch of life.
Uneven practice across locations
There were reports that some courts continued both detained and non-detained dockets during the shutdown, a departure from past practice. Those accounts were described as fluid and subject to change.
- The result was a patchwork: certain hearings proceeded, others were pulled from the calendar, and many were left in limbo.
- Attorneys warned clients that hearings appearing to continue could be canceled quickly if funding tightened or local offices adjusted schedules.
- The uneven flow made it harder to plan travel, arrange interpreters, or secure child care for appearances that might not go forward.
Administrative effects beyond the courtroom
The slowdown reached beyond hearings themselves. During the shutdown, fewer support staff were available to prepare files, process motions, and handle scheduling tasks.
- Judges reported increased workloads with less help, meaning they could hear and decide fewer cases each day.
- That reduction, multiplied across hundreds of courtrooms, led to a measurable loss in capacity even for detained cases that went forward.
Projected impacts:
– Ohio court officials projected a 15% increase in the backlog if the shutdown lasted several months.
– Other states prepared for 30% or more growth in just 6–8 weeks, a scenario that could ripple into 2026 as calendars filled with rebooked hearings and new filings.
Effects across the wider immigration system
Other parts of the immigration system moved at different speeds during the shutdown.
- U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)) continued operations but rerouted resources to priority screening and national security checks. This led to slower response times and reduced public-facing services in some areas.
- Enforcement agencies, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) (Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)) and (Customs and Border Protection (CBP)), kept working through the shutdown.
- Still, strained resources created pressure points in detention and removal cases, contributing indirectly to court delays as files piled up and coordination times stretched.
Human and practical consequences
The immediate human impact cut across states and case types.
- People seeking asylum, cancellation of removal, or other relief had to tell employers, schools, and family members that new hearing dates would arrive at an unknown time.
- Lawyers fielded calls from clients worried that rescheduling would cause missed fingerprint checks, address-notification problems, or loss of critical witnesses.
- When a process that requires precision runs into a government shutdown, small timing problems become bigger legal risks.
Even simple updates—like confirming a new court date—can be harder to manage when phone lines are overloaded and notices take weeks to print and mail.
Scale and capacity concerns
Advocates emphasized the math and capacity limits of the system.
- More than 3.4 million pending cases had been reported earlier, with later estimates topping 3.7 million by late 2024.
- Every day of missed non-detained hearings meant hundreds or thousands of cases slipping further down the calendar.
- Even if Congress restored funding quickly, courts would need time to regroup, assign new dates, notify parties, and rebuild a normal schedule. In some jurisdictions, a month of stalled calendars could take a year or more to unwind.
Comparison to 2019
Comparisons to the 2019 shutdown help explain the scale of disruption.
- In 2019, non-detained dockets paused in many courts, but the overall volume of pending cases was smaller and recovery, while bumpy, was easier to manage.
- This time, the larger backlog magnified the effect of each lost day.
- Heavy reliance on paper files and manual scheduling in many locations added friction.
- Virtual hearings helped in some places, but staff limits affected notice and file preparation, so remote options were not a cure-all.
Broader societal effects
Across the United States, the slowdown fed a sense of instability around immigration court.
- Judges and practitioners described a cycle of catch-up that erodes confidence in the system.
- Children in mixed-status families faced another school year with legal questions hanging over them.
- Employers confronted greater uncertainty about workers with pending relief.
- Service providers faced ongoing strain helping people whose cases moved on timelines that no longer made sense.
Proposed fixes and practical advice
Some officials and court observers argued for a steadier funding model for EOIR to shield the immigration court from the stop-and-go of budget fights. Others cautioned that even reliable funding won’t fix a system designed for far fewer cases.
Suggested improvements:
– Better staffing
– Clearer priorities
– Improved coordination among agencies
Practical advice from lawyers:
1. Keep addresses updated with the court.
2. Save every notice received from the court or agencies.
3. Expect rescheduling across multiple months and possible mailing delays.
4. Stay in touch with community groups for help with transportation and interpretation.
Community groups reported higher demand as people tried to stay ready for hearings that might be reset on short notice.
Outlook
While the immigration courts resumed fuller activity once funding returned, the gap created during the shutdown is likely to echo through 2025 and beyond. Judges will need to slot missed cases into already packed calendars and work through files that grew while phones rang off the hook and calendars sat frozen.
The practical reality on the ground was clear: the 2025 shutdown added delay to the immigration court backlog and turned an already slow process into an even slower one—especially for people not in custody who depended on routine hearings that didn’t happen.
Frequently Asked Questions
This Article in a Nutshell
The 2025 government shutdown paused most non-detained immigration hearings nationwide because EOIR funding lapsed. Detained cases continued but with reduced staff and fewer daily decisions, worsening a backlog that rose from about 1.3 million in 2020 to over 3.7 million by late 2024. Practices varied by court, causing a patchwork of cancellations and reschedules. Agencies like USCIS prioritized critical work, slowing routine services. Advocates call for steadier funding and better coordination; people are advised to update addresses and keep notices.
