Visa purposes from Nigeria, Russia and at the very least 73 different nations will now not be processed by United States embassies and consulates as Washington strikes to tighten immigration screening over issues about welfare dependence.
The US Division of State has directed consular officers to pause visa processing for the affected nations from January 21, pending a broad reassessment of screening and vetting procedures.
The directive was contained in an inner memo first reported by Fox Information.
Underneath the instruction, visa officers are to refuse purposes utilizing current provisions of US immigration regulation whereas the overview is ongoing.
The pause applies throughout a number of visa classes and can stay in pressure indefinitely till the reassessment is accomplished.
The nations affected span Africa, the Center East, Asia, Europe and Latin America, and embody Nigeria, Somalia, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Yemen, Afghanistan, Russia, Brazil and Thailand.
The coverage shift is linked to the “public cost” rule, a long-standing aspect of US immigration regulation that permits authorities to disclaim visas to people thought of more likely to depend on public advantages.
In November 2025, the State Division issued steering to embassies worldwide directing stricter enforcement of the rule.
That steering expanded the components consular officers should think about when assessing candidates, together with age, well being standing, English proficiency, {financial} capability, employment prospects and the potential want for long-term medical care.
Candidates deemed liable to turning into depending on public help will be denied entry.
Somalia has attracted specific consideration from US authorities following a serious fraud investigation in Minnesota, the place prosecutors uncovered widespread abuse of taxpayer-funded welfare programmes.
Federal officers stated lots of these implicated have been Somali nationals or Somali-People, a growth that heightened scrutiny of visa purposes linked to the nation.
Whereas Nigeria was not singled out within the memo, its inclusion locations it amongst nations now topic to more durable migration controls at a time when many Nigerians apply yearly for pupil, work, vacationer and family-based visas to the US.
The State Division has not offered a timeline for the completion of the overview or clarified whether or not humanitarian exemptions will apply.
The transfer is predicted to deepen uncertainty for potential travellers, college students and households, significantly from growing nations, and will additional pressure diplomatic and people-to-people ties with affected nations.