The United States administration under President Donald Trump has halted all immigrant visa applications. This has now seen the administration through the Department of States pause all processing for immigrant visas that allow applicants to permanently move to the United States.

According to a report that appeared on the Wall Street Journal, the pause has been issued to allow space to train visa officers on new guidance ensuring that applicants have enough financial means to support themselves after they arrive in the United States.

According to the report, immigrant visa applicants who had scheduled interview appointments at US embassies and consulates have already been notified by email that their interviews have been postponed. These applicants have however not been informed as to when their interviews shall take place.

Many applicants have been left wondering what implications this pause on visa processing will have. According to Brad Bernstein, a US immigration lawyer and the managing partner at Law Offices of Spar & Bernstein, the risk in the pause is that it might translate into policy.

“The immigrant visa applications processing pause is for every country in the world from A to Z. The most risky word in this is the term ‘pause’ which we have seen become policy when it comes to immigration and the current administration,” says Bernstein.

“The State Department claims that it needs to retrain consular officers on public charge meeting and many applicants are already being told that their scheduled interviews are being canceled or postponed. There’s no date for when regular interviews will resume.”

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Mr Bernstein however explains that the new pause does not mean that all types of visas are no longer being processed. “This is not a shutdown of every visa. Tourist visas, student visas, temporary work visas are all still being processed. Adjustment of status are also still being processed. This new pause concerns getting a green card at a US embassy or consulate abroad to enter the US as a permanent resident,” says Bernstein.

These green card immigrant visas include family-based categories, employment-based categories, and investment-based categories; spouses, parents, children, workers, and investors. Explaining how immigration pauses are becoming policy, Mr Bernstein gave the example of the Diversity Visa Program which is popularly known as the ‘Green Card’ lottery.

“The Diversity visa program was called a pause. More than eight months later, the government notice still says visa’s on pause. Diversity visa winners now face a 2026 deadline and that’s going to pass and their opportunity will be lost. And that’s how temporary pauses become government policy, without the administration ever admitting that t canceled everything” he explained.

The lawyer went on to explain that immigration has become a cat and mouse game between the current US administration and federal judges, where the administration is constantly seeking new ways to go around rulings that lift its immigration blockades. “We are witnessing the same with H-1B work visas. A federal judge struck down Trump’s $100,000 H-1B payment as an unauthorized tax. The administration has now returned several weeks later with a proposed $103,265 filing fee for the same visa category,” says Bernstein.

According to Bernstein, those with immigrant visa applications should however not lose all hope. “At some point, a judge is going to rule that this pause is a de facto ban on legal immigration. If you have an interview scheduled, don’t skip it unless you receive written instructions from the embassy or consulate offices. Check your email, spam, EAC account, and the embassy’s website,” he says.

“Keep your sponsorship, tax, employment and financial evidence up to date. If you have a child aging out or have expiring documents, speak with a qualified and experienced US immigration lawyer immediately.”

ADvTECH Group, the South African education company that owns Makini Schools, Crawford International and Rosebank College, posted a profit after tax of R726.2 million (about Sh5.81 billion) for the six months ended June 2026, supported by higher student enrolment, fee increases and improved collections.

The group’s revenue rose 8.0 percent to R5.06 billion (Sh40.48 billion), while operating profit increased 13.5 percent to R1.11 billion (Sh8.92 billion). This lifted the operating margin to 22 percent, up from 21 percent in the comparable period.

Headline earnings climbed 15.9 percent to R716.5 million (Sh5.73 billion), with headline earnings per share rising 16.1 percent to 130.8 South African cents.

Student numbers remained a key driver of growth. Total enrolment, measured in February, increased 12.8 percent to 119,197, with tertiary students rising 19 percent to 71,467. Enrolment across the group’s schools in the rest of Africa rose 13.9 percent to 13,161.

ADvTECH’s Rest of Africa schools division, which includes operations in Kenya, Botswana and Ethiopia, recorded an 8.0 percent increase in revenue to R303.1 million (Sh2.42 billion).

Operating profit rose 10.7 percent to R91.3 million (Sh730.4 million), pushing the division’s operating margin to 30.1 percent from 29.4 percent.

The company said that the figures represent the combined Rest of Africa division and do not constitute standalone financial results for Makini Schools.

ADvTECH said all schools in the division recorded strong growth in local currencies, although the appreciation of the South African rand moderated the growth reported in the group’s financial statements.

The division also benefited from increased enrolment and the integration of Regis Runda, which ADvTECH acquired in September 2025 before incorporating the school into the Makini brand.

“The group’s strong financial performance, solid cash generation and robust balance sheet are evidence of our sound business model, clear market focus and continued emphasis on efficiencies,” said Aunyana Moloisane, the group’s new business development executive, in the financial presentation.

The group is undertaking several investments in its Kenyan schools as it seeks to expand capacity and strengthen its academic offering.

At Makini Runda, ADvTECH is upgrading facilities, information and communication technology infrastructure and academic-support systems. The campus will also gain access to the group’s AI-powered Advlearn platform.

The school is scheduled to introduce the Cambridge International curriculum in September 2026 after receiving the necessary approval.

ADvTECH is also redeveloping Makini State House following the securing of a new lease for the Nairobi campus.

The project, which includes facility upgrades and an expansion of student capacity, is expected to be completed by December 2026.

Elsewhere in the group, the tertiary education business continued to post strong growth, with revenue increasing 17.3 percent to R2.24 billion (Sh17.94 billion). Operating profit in the division rose 19.4 percent to R591.7 million (Sh4.73 billion).

The group’s resourcing business, however, recorded a 14.7 percent decline in revenue to R655.8 million (Sh5.25 billion), partly due to the continuing effects of the closure of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) on its African recruitment operations.

ADvTECH said its improved collection processes helped strengthen its debtor position during the period.

Gross trade receivables increased 5.0 percent, below the rate of revenue growth, while credit losses declined 3.3 percent to R115.4 million (Sh923.2 million).

Cash generation also strengthened, with free operating cash flow before capital expenditure rising 17.8 percent to R2.26 billion (Sh18.05 billion).

The education group increased capital expenditure to R404 million (Sh3.23 billion), while capital commitments more than doubled to R3.27 billion (Sh26.17 billion), reflecting planned investments in additional capacity and campus development.

ADvTECH also returned capital to shareholders during the period, repurchasing shares worth R326.3 million (Sh2.61 billion).

The board declared an interim dividend of 53 South African cents, equivalent to about Sh4.24 per share, representing an increase of 17.8 percent.

After the reporting period, ADvTECH acquired a 25 percent stake in education technology company MathU Teaching Emporium for R15.8 million (Sh126.4 million).

The transaction was completed after the half-year reporting date and is therefore not reflected in the unaudited first-half financial statements.

Also Read: Kenya Airways flies into Sh16.1 billion half year net loss turbulence

The national carrier Kenya Airways has announced wider half year net loss of Sh16.08 billion for the first six months of the current financial year. This meant that the carrier had seen its net loss increase by Sh3.9 billion from the net loss of Sh12.2 billion that was recorded in the previous half year 2025.

During the current half year period that was reviewed, operating loss increased to Sh10.64 billion from Sh6.24 billion while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization, and restructuring margin (EBITDAR) which measures a company’s core operational performance and profitability fell to 8.4 percent from 10.5 percent.

The airline said that its operating costs were a major contributor to the poor performance with an increase of 13.8 percent to Sh91.9 billion. This outpaced the increase of 9.1 percent in revenue to Sh81.3 billion. Whereas revenue growth remained positive in the face of reduced capacity, costs grew at a higher rate than turnover. Cargo revenue went up by 17.5 percent to Sh8.77 billion.

“Our cargo target remains a 40 percent market share, with a capacity ambition of 250 tonnes per day. This will strengthen our cargo business and position us to capture more opportunities across the market,” said Kenya Airways Acting chief executive officer George Kamal.

Fuel was also highlighted as another contributor. The national carrier said that its fuel costs had gone up by 66 percent in the period under review due to the war and economic instability in the Middle East region that have impacted the flow of oil in the market.

“One of the challenges we faced in first half was increase in fuel prices, we also had global supply challenges that affected availability of our aircrafts,” said Kenya Airways Acting chief finance officer Mary Mwenga.

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In the same period, Kenya Airways experienced lower capacity with its available seat kilometres falling down by 9 percent. At the same time, the balance sheet weakened due to liabilities that increased by Sh12.86 billion, with negative equity positioning widening by Sh15.79 billion.

Total assets depreciated by 1.6 percent to Sh180.3 billion. Non-current assets went down by 3.9 percent to Sh136.32 billion while current assets went up by 6.2 percent to Sh43.97 billion.

The half year loss was just Sh1.1 billion shy of the full year net loss of Sh17.2 billion that the airline recorded in the full year 2025. In that financial year, KQ blamed its heavy loss on the grounding of its wide body Dreamliner planes that were due for engine overhauls. “Overall performance and operations in the year 2025 were severely impacted primarily by the temporary grounding of three of the wide body fleet, Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft. This was driven by the global supply chain constraints and limited engine availability,” Kenya Airways had said in a statement.