WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States announced that it will stop processing immigrant visas for 75 countries whose citizens could require public assistance in the United States.
The State Department said on Wednesday that it would suspend immigrant visa processing for citizens of 75 countries, including Afghanistan, Iran, Russia, and Somalia, whose nationals the Trump administration has deemed likely to require public assistance in the United States.
The department stated that it had instructed consular officers to halt immigrant visa applications from the affected countries, in line with a broader directive issued in November that tightened the rules for potential immigrants who could become “public charges.”
The suspension, which will begin on January 21, will not apply to applicants seeking nonimmigrant visas, or temporary tourist or business visas, which comprise the vast majority of visa applicants. Demand for nonimmigrant visas is expected to rise dramatically in the coming months and years due to the upcoming World Cup in 2026 and the Olympic Games in 2028, both hosted or co-hosted by the United States.
“The Trump administration is ending the abuse of the United States’ immigration system by those who would extract wealth from the American people,” the department said in a statement. “Immigrant visa processing for these 75 countries will be paused while the State Department reevaluates its immigration-processing procedures to prevent the entry of foreign nationals who would rely on public assistance and public benefits,” it added.
The Trump administration has already sharply restricted immigrant and nonimmigrant visa processing for citizens of dozens of countries, many of them in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
The November guidance on which Wednesday’s decision rests instructed embassy and consulate officials to conduct a thorough and complete assessment of visa applicants to demonstrate that they will not need to rely on government public benefits at any point after admission.
Although federal law already required those seeking permanent residence or legal status to demonstrate that they would not be a public charge, Trump in his first term broadened the range of benefit programs that could disqualify applicants, and the guidelines in the cable appear to go even further in scope.
Immigrants seeking to enter the United States already undergo a medical examination by a physician approved by a U.S. embassy. They are screened for contagious diseases, such as tuberculosis, and are asked to reveal any history of drug or alcohol use, mental health conditions, or violence. They are also required to have a series of vaccines.
The new directive expanded those requirements with more specificity. It said that consular officers must consider a range of specific details about visa applicants, including their age, health, family status, finances, education, skills, and any past use of public assistance, regardless of country. English proficiency of applicants must also be evaluated, and interviews may be conducted in English.
Experts said at the time that it could further limit who can enter the country at a moment when the Republican administration was already tightening those rules.
The countries affected by the suspension announced on Wednesday are:
Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia, Brazil, Burma, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cabo Verde, Colombia, Congo, Cuba, Dominica, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Nepal, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Republic of the Congo, Russia, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Uruguay, Uzbekistan and Yemen.
