The United States Department of State has suspended immigrant visa processing for applicants from 75 countries effective 21 January 2026. The indefinite pause affects nations in Latin America, the Caribbean, the Balkans, South Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Applicants may submit applications but no visas will be approved or issued during the suspension. Dual nationals using passports from unaffected countries receive an exception. The measure does not apply to non-immigrant visas including tourist or business categories.
The decision follows a November order tightening checks on potential public charge risks. The State Department stated the pause prevents entry of foreign nationals who would access welfare benefits. It forms part of broader immigration restrictions including travel bans on specific countries and reduced refugee admissions. Deportations exceeded 605,000 by early December 2025 with 1.9m self-deportations leading to net negative immigration in 2025. The move precedes the 2026 FIFA World Cup co-hosted by the US.
US IMmmifration shared in a written statement “Immigrant visa processing from these 75 countries will be paused while the State Department reassess immigration processing procedures to prevent the entry of foreign nationals who would take welfare and public benefits.”
The covered countries include: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Burma, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Colombia, Cote 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, Kyrgyz Republic, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Nepal, Nicaragua, Nigeria, North Macedonia, 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.
