From allowing the Trump administration’s termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians and Syrians to move forward to blocking asylum requests at the southern border, the U.S. Supreme Court ended June with several decisions expanding the administration’s control over immigration policies. 

Congress has also helped further the administration’s immigration agenda this month. Following months of debate over federal funding, President Donald Trump signed a new spending bill in mid-June that includes roughly $70 billion in additional funding to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). 

As the federal administration expands its deportation efforts and limits legal immigration pathways, advocacy groups continue to challenge its policies in court. El Tecolote has been tracking these policy changes, the lawsuits against them and their impact on immigrant communities in California and the Bay Area. 

Here are the latest developments from May and June. Updates from April can be found here


National news

Supreme Court upholds birthright citizenship

The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the constitutional guarantee of birthright citizenship on June 30, striking down President Donald Trump’s executive order seeking to deny citizenship to some children born in the United States.

The executive order would have prevented children from automatically receiving U.S. citizenship if their mothers were undocumented or temporarily present in the country and their fathers were neither citizens nor lawful permanent residents.

In its ruling, the court affirmed that children born in the United States to parents who are undocumented or temporarily in the country are citizens at birth under the 14th Amendment.

The decision preserves the longstanding understanding that nearly everyone born on U.S. soil automatically receives citizenship, regardless of their parents’ immigration status.

Latest update: June 30, 2026


Supreme Court allows Trump administration’s TPS terminations for Haitians and Syrians to move forward

The Trump Administration will be able to end the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for hundreds of thousands of Haitian and Syrian nationals, following a June 25 Supreme Court ruling. The decision means many immigrants who have relied on these humanitarian protections could lose their ability to work and live legally in the country. 

The decision won’t immediately result in removals of every TPS holder. Those who do not already have final deportation orders might be able to contest their removal in immigration court. 

Latest update: June 25, 2026


Trump administration can turn away asylum seekers at the border,  Supreme Court rules

On June 25, the Supreme Court ruled that immigration officials can prevent asylum seekers from applying to asylum at the border.

According to the constitution, people who enter the U.S. fleeing persecution are allowed to apply for asylum and stay in the country while the government processes their application, which can take years due to current backlogs. Like the Obama administration before it, the Trump administration has tried to limit access to asylum by arguing that people turned away at the border have not technically entered the U.S. and therefore are not eligible for asylum protections. 

Latest update: June 25, 2026


Supreme Court limits protections for green card holders with criminal records

A Supreme Court ruling on June 23 gives border officials more authority to deny entry into the U.S. to green card holders with criminal records.

The decision could make it easier for officials to turn away, parole, or detain permanent residents at the border. Immigration attorneys are concerned the ruling could result in wrongful detentions and make it harder for green card fielders to defend their cases.

Latest update: June 23, 2026


Judge blocks Trump’s immigration courthouse arrests

In a decision issued on June 23, a California federal judge ruled that the Trump administration must stop arresting people at immigration courts across the country. Bay Area immigration attorneys hope the decision will allow courthouses to become neutral spaces for immigrants seeking to defend their rights to remain in the country legally. 

Since last summer, ICE agents have swarmed immigration courthouses across the U.S., arresting immigrants after their hearings, even when immigration judges had not yet issued final removal orders in their cases. Some attorneys started filing habeas petitions for individuals, arguing that these arrests violated due process. As a result, many immigrants with legal representation were released. 

Latest update: June 23, 2026


Trump administration can resume fast-tracking deportations, appeals court rules

Following an appeals court ruling issued on June 23, the Trump administration can continue swiftly deporting undocumented immigrants who have been in the U.S. for less than two years without giving them the opportunity to appear before a judge. 

These kinds of deportations, known as expedited removals, were previously used exclusively for immigrants detained near a land or water border. Last year, however, the Trump Administration started applying the policy to immigrants across the country, including people who were arrested at immigration court. 

Latest update: June 23, 2026


Trump proposes higher citizenship application fees

The Trump Administration unveiled plans to increase citizenship application fees by $570, nearly doubling the cost for immigrants seeking to become naturalized citizens. As part of the proposed policy, the administration also plans to eliminate previously available fee waivers for low-income earners.   

The proposal has not yet been approved. Members of the public have 60 days to submit comments in favor or against it.

Latest update: June 22, 2026


Following judge ruling, Trump administration restarts asylum and immigration processing

On June 12, the Trump administration announced that it will resume processing certain immigration applications, including asylum, after previously halting revisions for applicants from dozens of countries.

The announcement follows a federal judge ruling that struck down a series of Trump’s policies aimed at limiting access to asylum and other immigration benefits. Those policies included a global hold on asylum applications and a pause on immigration decisions affecting people from 39 countries, leaving many immigrants unable to obtain temporary work permits. 

In his ruling, the judge said these policies were making it impossible for immigrants to remain in the U.S. and were inconsistent with U.S. immigration laws. He described the measures as being fueled by “anti-immigration” sentiments. 

Latest update: June 12, 2026


Treasury Department makes it easier for banks to share data on suspected undocumented clients

Following an executive order signed in mid-May, the U.S. Department of Treasury is now providing guidance to banks that allows them to quickly share information about customers who may not have legal immigration status. 

Though the Trump administration has framed the order as an attempt to combat crime and fraud, it instructs banks to look for signs that may be associated with undocumented immigrants, including the use of individual taxpayer identification numbers (ITINs). Federal officials argue that undocumented workers could introduce risk to the financial system because they may be harder to hold accountable for unpaid loans if they leave the country. 

The executive order does not explicitly require banks to collect citizenship information from clients — something the banking industry has opposed for months. Historically, banks have not collected citizenship data from their customers. 

Latest update: June 12, 2026


Trump administration ramps up denaturalization efforts, targeting 17 immigrants

As part of its broader denaturalization efforts, the Trump administration announced that it would seek to revoke the citizenship of 17 naturalized U.S. citizens whom officials say fraudulently obtained citizenship. 

USCIS says that the people targeted committed serious crimes, including fraud and sexual abuse, and did not disclose them during the naturalization process. 

The administration’s renewed emphasis on denaturalization is part of what officials say is an effort to discourage immigration fraud. 

U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche told CBS News that only the naturalized citizens who obtained citizenship through fraud should be concerned about these efforts. 

Latest update: June 12, 2026


Not all green card applicants will have to go home, DHS clarifies

After USCIS announced that applicants would need to return to their home countries while their green card applications were processed, except in “extraordinary” cases, the Department of Homeland Security clarified that not all applicants would need to complete the process abroad,  and that this decision would be left to the discretion of immigration officers reviewing individual cases. 

Many details about how the policy will be implemented are still up in the air. The DHS spokesperson told the New York Times that groups that could be affected could include people who overstay their visas and immigrants from countries whose citizens frequently rely on U.S. assistance after they immigrate. 

Latest update: May 29, 2026


AP report highlights medical neglect in ICE detention centers

In hundreds of federal lawsuits, immigrants held in detention centers have alleged that they are not receiving adequate medical care and that their health needs are being neglected while detained. 

An Associated Press and KFF Health News investigation found that hundreds of detained immigrants did not receive medications on time, or at all, for conditions including diabetes, depression, cancer and HIV. The investigation also found that requests for medical help often went ignored for weeks. 

Detention facilities maintain that they follow ICE standards and provide detainees with medical care when needed. 

Latest update: June 2, 2026


U.S. Border Patrol Chief resigns

Mike Banks, who served as U.S. Border Patrol chief, is retiring from his position, according to a CBS news report. He is the latest in a series of high-ranking immigration enforcement officials to step down from the Trump administration. Banks announced his retirement to Border Patrol staff in May, saying he planned to focus on his family and ranch. On June 1, he was succeeded by Rosario ‘Pete’ Vasquez

Latest update: June 1, 2026


Judge rejects Trump’s $100,000 H-1B visa fee

Earlier this month, a federal judge determined that the new $100,000 annual application fee for H-1B visas — a type of visa for high-skilled workers — was unconstitutional and struck down the policy. The judge’s ruling responds to a lawsuit filed by 20 states after Trump announced plans last September to raise the cost of the visas. The administration is expected to appeal the decision. 

Latest update: June 15, 2026


Judge says ICE agents should stop making warrantless arrests

On May 7, a federal judge said immigration enforcement officers should not rely on new ICE guidance that instructs them to make warrantless immigration arrests. 

The judge also noted that this guidance does not require agents to consider a person’s ties to the community before determining whether they pose a flight risk and should be arrested. 

DHS maintains that it has authority to conduct lawful arrests and that enforcement officers use “reasonable suspicion” when investigating potential arrestees. 

Latest update: May 7, 2026


California news

California advocates concerned about ‘mega master’ immigration hearings

Legal advocates say federal immigration courts across the country have increasingly started scheduling dozens of migrants for hearings at the same time, which they are calling “mega master” immigration hearings. 

Attorneys say these hearings make it more difficult for immigrants to access legal support because only a limited number of lawyers offer free legal aid at courthouses. Some advocates are also worried that some immigrants have had their court dates moved up by months or even years, increasing the likelihood that people miss their appointments and receive deportation orders.  

Immigration courts across the country continue to face severe backlogs, leading many cases to take years to resolve. The Executive Office for Immigration Review told Capradio that it is adjusting schedules to make sure cases are processed in a timely and lawful manner. 

Latest update: June 8, 2026


San Francisco news

ICE arrests, then releases SF asylum seeker

On May 27, ICE agents arrested a 45-year-old Peruvian asylum seeker outside of his San Francisco home. The incident, which a neighbor recorded on video, quickly drew attention from legal advocates, who successfully sought a temporary restraining order from a federal judge, resulting in the man’s release. 

In an interview with the San Francisco Standard,  Marvin Godoy Calderon, the man who was arrested, said he asked to see a warrant but was instead “yanked from the car and pressed facedown on the asphalt.” Agents took him first to the ICE field office at 630 Sansome St. and then transported him to a processing facility before receiving instructions to release him and return him to San Francisco.

DHS, however, has said it will continue pursuing deportation proceedings against Godoy Calderon. 

Latest update: June 4, 2026


Following SF Court closure, Concord sees uptick in immigration cases

Weeks after San Francisco’s immigration court closed in early May, many immigration cases are being transferred to Concord, a city in the East Bay that also houses an immigration courthouse. 

Attorneys told the Associated Press that the shift has made many cases more burdensome for immigrants and their lawyers, as reaching Concord by public transportation can be lengthy and difficult. Security at the courthouse is also strict: visitors must turn off their cell phones in front of security guards and can only bring water in clear bottles. 

Latest update: May 22, 2026

Mariana is a bilingual reporter for El Tecolote through UC Berkeley's California Local News Fellowship. Her work has also been featured in the Los Angeles Times, the Guardian and KQED.