Federal Court Blocks Trump Migrant Removal Plan Citing Safety Risks

US judges have stopped the Trump plan to send migrants away from third nations. The ruling says people must be able to speak up about safety risks before being flown out of the country. A federal appeals court in Boston agreed with this view on Friday. A three-judge panel there mostly backed a February decision that found the Department of Homeland Security's policy unlawful.

The case is part of a class-action lawsuit. It tests what fair treatment migrants are owed when they face removal to places with no connection to them. US Circuit Judge Seth Aframe wrote for the group. He stated that individuals need a "meaningful" chance to raise safety concerns before being sent away. This rejected the Trump administration's narrower reading of the law.

The court did overturn part of the ruling on procedural grounds. It concerned whether officials must try deporting migrants to countries they have ties with first. Trina Realmuto, a lawyer for the plaintiffs at the National Immigration Litigation Alliance, weighed in. She said the decision confirmed that "due process and the protections Congress enacted against persecution and torture cannot be circumvented by putting someone on a plane to a country that was never part of their removal proceedings".

The DHS did not immediately comment on the verdict. The Trump administration is expected to appeal the ruling soon. Under Trump, the US has struck agreements allowing it to send more than 25,000 migrants to at least 29 third countries. Most often these are in Mexico. This data comes from Third Country Deportation Watch, a tracker run by the rights groups Refugees International and Human Rights First.

The policy was adopted in March 2025. It allowed removals with only minimal notice if officials had diplomatic assurances against persecution. The controversial programme has reached the Supreme Court twice already. In 2025, the justices cleared the way for eight men to be deported to South Sudan. These men included nationals of Cuba, Myanmar and Vietnam. The US State Department advises against visiting that country because of crime, kidnapping, and armed conflict.

The DHS called those removals "a win". Rights groups said they flouted basic protections. The Trump administration's immigration agenda has faced a string of setbacks this month. A federal judge blocked planned caps on student and journalist visas. That judge called the government's justification exceptionally weak. Meanwhile, a coalition of 22 states and Washington, DC sued to stop a separate rule. That rule would let officials deny green cards to immigrants who lawfully use public benefits.