U.S. State Department Halts Immigrant Visa Processing for 75 Countries

The Trump administration announced on Wednesday that it will indefinitely freeze immigration visa procedures for about 40% of the world’s countries, further intensifying its anti-immigration crackdown as US president Donald Trump prepares for his second year in office.

Effective January 21, “the Trump Administration will halt processing of immigrant visas from 75 countries whose immigrants receive welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates,” the State Department wrote in a post on X. “The freeze will remain in place so that the United States can ensure that new immigrants do not extract wealth from the American people,” she added.

The Trump administration announced this on Wednesday Indefinitely Freezing immigration visa procedures for about 40 percent of the world’s countries, further intensifying its crackdown on immigration at a time when US President Donald Trump is preparing for the second year of his return to office.

Effective January 21, the Trump administration will “stop processing immigrant visas from 75 countries.” whose immigrants receive social welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates.” books In a post on X. “The freeze will remain in place until the United States can ensure that new immigrants will not extract wealth from the American people.”

Comment seems to be limited to Immigrant visaswhich would put the applicant on road to Ultimate citizenship; This step does Don’t show up To apply to individuals seeking short-term visas, such as temporary workers or Tourists.

Trump has claimed this repeatedly immigrants Harm the American economyalthough A Mountain of evidence On the contrary.

“Under President Trump, we will not allow foreign nationals to abuse the U.S. immigration system and take advantage of the generosity of the American people,” State Department spokesman Tommy Piggott said. Share on X.

the 75 countries affected We 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, Cuba;

Democratic Republic of the Congo, 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, North 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.

The move represents the latest escalation in Trump’s tough immigration campaign. This effort extends into his first term in office, which saw the launch of his term The so-called Muslim ban And the policy of family separation.

In Trump 2.0, the administration went further, including by dramatically expanding full or partial travel bans against dozens of countries in December. And it was expanding Announce After an Afghan immigrant was arrested and charged with shooting two US National Guard soldiers in Washington.

When this travel ban is combined with the Trump administration’s recent visa freeze, “the Trump administration has now blocked or suspended immigrant visas* for 90 different countries, including 70% of African countries,” Aaron Reichlin-Melnyk, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, said in a report. Share on X.

The administration’s latest announcement is sure to add to the uncertainty facing immigrant communities in the United States.

New data published by economists at the Brookings Institution this week showed that the United States More immigrants lost In 2025 from entering the country – the first time this has happened in at least half a century. This decline can largely be attributed to restrictive measures taken by the Trump administration, the authors said.

“The first year of the second Trump administration saw radical changes in immigration policy, leading to a sharp slowdown in net migration to the United States,” the authors say. books. “We expect the pattern of restrictive policy and increased enforcement to continue or intensify over the next year.”