The American government has announced its intention to temporarily suspend the processing of visa applications from citizens of 75 countries. The measure will take effect as of 21 January 2026. It hasn't been announced when the processing of applications will resume.
The American government announces new measures
On January 14, the US government asked embassies and consulates in various countries to stop processing visa applications. Initially, it was not known if the measure would concern all types of visas or only residence permits, but later it became clear that it only affected the processing of permanent residence permits. Visa applications for tourism, business trips, study or medical treatment will be processed as usual.
Which nationalities are affected?
In total, 75 nationalities are no longer eligible for a residence permit for the United States:
Africa
Algeria, Cameroon, Cape Verde (Cabo Verde), Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire), Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Libya, Morocco, Nigeria, Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia and Uganda.
Asia
Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Cambodia, Georgia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Syria, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Yemen.
Europa
Albania, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia (North Macedonia), Moldova, Montenegro, and Russia.
North and Central America and the Caribbean
Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Cuba, Dominica, Grenada, Guatemala, Haiti, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
South America
Brazil, Colombia and Uruguay
Oceania
Fiji
What should applicants take into account?
Applicants with the above nationalities who have applied for a US residence permit should be aware that their appointment at the embassy or consulate might be cancelled. In addition to this, processing times may be longer than usual.
Official announcement from the US government
Embassies in the countries concerned have posted a notice on their websites explaining the new measures. The pause would concern only permanent residence permits since, according to the immigration services, nationals of the countries in question often claim benefits and allowances at the expense of American taxpayers.
On the other hand, applicants for other types of visas are urged to set the privacy settings of their social media accounts to “public”. According to the immigration services, this is necessary in order to conduct background checks before visa applications can be approved.
No changes to the ESTA system
The announced measures do not affect the ESTA system. THe ESTA is a digital travel authorisation that certain countries can apply for in order to travel to the United States without a visa. British, Irish and most European travellers are eligible for an ESTA. If you want to travel to the United States for a holiday, a business trip or a transfer, you can easily apply for your ESTA at e-Visa.co.uk. You will find helpful explanations that will help you fill in each field. If you experience any problem to complete the form, please feel free to contact our friendly customer service team.
After submitting the application, the ESTA will be granted in an average of 3 days. If you need your ESTA urgently you can always submit an urgent application. Urgent applications are usually approved within 6 hours on average. Once granted, the ESTA is valid for up to 2 years and each stay in USA may last up to 90 days. Learn more about the requirements and the validity.