Trump's green card memo dropped before a holiday weekend. Immigration lawyers say clients panicked.

• USCIS issued new green-card guidance before the holiday weekend.
• BI spoke with six immigration lawyers about the fallout from the memo.
• Lawyers said anxious clients asked whether their yearslong plans had changed overnight.

Several attorneys also said Friday’s announcement appeared more severe than the underlying memo.

At Bay Immigration Law, which works with startup founders and tech workers, Otto Van Maerssen said many existing clients were seeking reassurance. “For some of them, it was, is it even possible now to adjust status?” Van Maerssen, a senior partner, said.

TJ Albrecht, another Bay Immigration attorney, estimated that client outreach surged over the long weekend. He said the firm’s reaction oscillated between “dread and optimism” as lawyers compared the memo with the USCIS press release announcing the change.

“So, we think that the vast majority, at least from our clients, will ultimately not be affected,” he said. Other visa applicants — like students and B-1 temporary business visitors — might not be so lucky.

Divij Kishore, founder of the immigration-focused firm Flagship Law, said clients asked whether they should continue with green-card applications, what would happen to pending cases, and whether staying in the US still made sense.

“There’s a sense of fatigue that I’m starting to see in the people that I represent,” Kishore said. “I’m concerned that in the way that it’s been released to the public and the way it’s been reported to the public so far, there’s a knee-jerk reaction that’s happening where people are acting out of fear rather than proactive decision-making and thoughtful decision-making.”

Locke said the memo arrived at the end of a yearslong process for some workers who had followed the rules, renewed visas, built careers, and started families in the US.

“It has been chaotic,” she said. “Right now, we are waiting to see what USCIS does.”

USCIS didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.