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US State Department Issues Pause on Immigrant Visa Processing for 75 Countries
Overview
Beginning January 21, the State Department will suspend the issuance of immigrant visas (consular applications for permanent residence) for nationals of 75 countries* while it reevaluates how it determines whether applicants are inadmissible on public-charge grounds—that is, likely to rely on U.S. government financial assistance in the future. The policy was first announced on social media and later formalized through guidance on the State Department’s website.
Applicants from the affected countries may continue to file applications and attend scheduled interviews during the suspension, but no immigrant visas will be issued. Dual nationals applying with a passport from a non-listed country are exempt.
This policy does not affect nonimmigrant visas or I-485 applications to adjust status to permanent residence while in the United States.
However, many of the listed countries are already subject to full or partial travel bans as detailed in our previous Gibney alerts here:
White House Expands Travel Ban Effective January 1, 2026
Significant U.S. Immigration Changes Announced Following Attack on National Guard Members
New Presidential Proclamation Restricts Entry of Certain Foreign Nationals (Effective Monday, June 9, 2025)
*Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia, Brazil, Burma, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Colombia, Cote d’Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, 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.
Aisling Ryan