The Trump administration has moved to sharply tighten legal immigration into the United States, ordering an indefinite suspension of immigrant visa processing for applicants from 75 countries in one of its broadest restrictions yet on lawful entry.
The freeze, which comes into effect on January 21, applies to countries whose migrants are deemed by US officials to be at risk of becoming a “public charge” — a term used to describe people who may rely on government welfare for basic needs. The US state department said it would pause immigrant visa processing from nations where migrants “take welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates”.
The suspension will remain in place until Washington is satisfied that new immigrants will not become a financial burden. “We are working to ensure the generosity of the American people will no longer be abused,” the department said in a statement posted on social media.
The list of countries include 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.
The move is part of a wider immigration crackdown that has intensified since Donald Trump returned to office. The state department claims more than 1,00,000 visas have been revoked in recent months, while the department of homeland security said last month that over 6,05,000 people have been deported. An additional 25 lakh are reported to have left the country voluntarily.
The administration has also expanded travel bans to 39 countries, suspended asylum processing, and halted citizenship and green card applications for people from nations already under restrictions.
Somali Americans have come under particular scrutiny following fraud allegations and federal investigations in Minnesota. Trump last month used derogatory language to describe Democratic lawmaker Ilhan Omar during a cabinet meeting and said he did not want Somalis in the US.
However, research challenges the administration’s claims about immigrant reliance on welfare. A February 2025 study by the libertarian Cato Institute found that immigrants consumed 21 percent fewer welfare and entitlement benefits per capita than native-born Americans in 2022.
The latest restrictions contrast with Trump’s earlier public statements supporting legal immigration. In a State of the Union address during his first term, he said immigrants “enrich our nation and strengthen our society”, while insisting they must enter the country legally.
