Filed Date: April 30, 2026
Case Ongoing
Clearinghouse coding in progress
(This summary is temporary while we research the case.)
Filed on April 30, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, this putative class action was brought by six detained noncitizens against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and their respective agency heads.
The named plaintiffs each had pending immigration relief applications within USCIS's exclusive or initial jurisdiction, including Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS), T and U Visas, asylum-based petitions, and adjustment of status claims. On December 5, 2025, DHS announced it would no longer collect biometric information from detained noncitizens with pending USCIS benefit requests, ending a prior intradepartmental agreement under which ICE had collected such biometrics on USCIS's behalf. Because biometrics submission is a required step in USCIS applications, and because detained individuals cannot attend outside biometrics appointments while USCIS refuses to reschedule them on account of detention, plaintiffs alleged that the policy created a jurisdictional trap resulting in the denial or abandonment of their applications — a consequence each named plaintiff had already experienced or was facing imminently.
The complaint asserted five causes of action under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and the Fifth Amendment's Due Process Clause, alleging that the Biometrics Policy was contrary to law, arbitrary and capricious, issued without required notice-and-comment rulemaking, and deprived class members of liberty and property interests without due process. Plaintiffs sought declaratory relief, a stay and vacatur of the policy, injunctive relief compelling biometrics collection, class certification, and attorneys' fees.
This case is ongoing.
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73277892/parties/z-v-united-states-department-of-homeland-security/
Caldarone, Richard P. (District of Columbia)
Georgevich, Mary (District of Columbia)
Goldstein, Elena (District of Columbia)
Swift, Alethea Anne (District of Columbia)
Wolfson, Paul R.Q. (District of Columbia)
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73277892/z-v-united-states-department-of-homeland-security/
Last updated May 31, 2026, 3:08 a.m.
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Trump Administration 2.0: Challenges to the Government
Key Dates
Filing Date: April 30, 2026
Case Ongoing: Yes
Case Details
Other Dockets:
District of District of Columbia 1:26-cv-01510
Available Documents:
Case Summary of Z. v. United States Department of Homeland Security, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, https://clearinghouse.net/case/48134/.