Seventy-five countries have been added to a US visa “stop-list,” facing an indefinite ban on immigrant visa processing. The Trump administration’s new policy, effective January 21, utilizes the “public charge” admissibility rule to justify this broad suspension. The move effectively halts legal migration from these nations until further notice.
The directive focuses on the administrative step of printing the visa. Consular officers are mandated to stop this process for the listed countries. If a visa is not printed, the case is refused. This technical mechanism allows for a rapid and widespread shutdown of visa issuance.
The affected countries span every continent except Australia and Antarctica. The list includes nations with long-standing ties to the US, disrupting family reunification and employment-based migration. The policy is a clear signal that the administration is prioritizing economic self-sufficiency over other immigration goals.
Exceptions are limited to those with dual citizenship in unaffected nations or those whose travel serves a critical US interest. For most, the ban is total.
The countries on the stop-list are: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Myanmar, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, The Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, North Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Nepal, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Republic of the Congo, Russia, Rwanda, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, and Yemen.
