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By Billal Rahman
Immigration Reporter
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A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to open the 2027 Diversity Visa lottery after the administration failed to begin the green card program's registration period on schedule.
U.S. District Judge Jinsook Ohta granted a preliminary injunction Wednesday requiring the State Department, led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, to establish a registration period for the fiscal year 2027 program. The ruling allows prospective applicants to enter the green card lottery, with the State Department required to process entries until all 55,000 visas are issued or the 2027 fiscal year ends.
Ohta ordered the department to publicly announce and open the 2027 Diversity Visa lottery's registration period by midnight Eastern time on Thursday, according to Curtis Morrison, an attorney representing Red Eagle Law L.C., which brought the lawsuit. The registration period must remain open for at least 30 days.
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A State Department spokesperson told Newsweek, "Under the leadership of President Donald J. Trump and Secretary Rubio, the Department of State is putting American interests first in our visa process."
The spokesperson added that the department generally does not comment on pending or ongoing litigation.
The Trump administration, which has opposed the Diversity Visa program, did not open registration for the 2027 lottery before the previous fiscal year ended. The government subsequently argued in court that opening a delayed registration period would conflict with regulations governing the program's timing.
Red Eagle Law sued Rubio, challenging the State Department's failure to open registration under the Administrative Procedure Act. The firm argued in court that the delay had caused financial harm because it relies on work representing Diversity Visa applicants and would be unable to recover those losses later.
Since President Donald Trump began his second term, his administration has tightened several legal immigration pathways, including visa and humanitarian programs, alongside its immigration enforcement crackdown.
Created by Congress in 1990, the Diversity Visa program offers green cards to eligible people from countries with low rates of U.S. immigration. Lottery winners must still meet immigration requirements to receive a visa.
‘Arbitrary and Capricious Government Action’
Ohta found Red Eagle was likely to succeed on its claim that the government's inaction was unlawful, concluding that the failure to open registration had effectively suspended the program without sufficient explanation and amounted to "arbitrary and capricious government action."
The government argued that reopening the lottery after the normal registration timetable had passed would conflict with federal rules requiring a registration period of at least 30 days. Red Eagle argued that the missed deadline should not prevent the court from ordering the State Department to administer the congressionally authorized program.
Ohta rejected the government's timing argument, finding that adhering to the timetable under the circumstances would prevent the fiscal 2027 lottery from taking place.
The judge also found that Red Eagle had standing and that the firm's claimed economic losses could constitute irreparable harm because it could not recover damages later.
The preliminary injunction marks a reversal from an earlier stage of the case. On September 3, Ohta denied without prejudice Red Eagle's request for a temporary restraining order that would have required the department to immediately open registration for the 2027 lottery. She instead allowed the case to proceed on an expedited schedule.
Under Wednesday's injunction, the first step of that process must now resume for the 2027 program. The judge said the court would retain jurisdiction over implementation of the order.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Matthew Robinson and Shakeema Edwards.
Update 10/15/26, 8:32 a.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from the State Department.
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