The United States has paused immigrant visa processing for 75 countries in an effort to crack down on applicants deemed likely to become a public liability. “Immigrant visa processing from 75 countries will be paused while the State Department reassesses immigration processing procedures to prevent the entry of foreign nationals who would take welfare and public benefits”, State Department Spokesman has said.
A State Department memo, seen first by Fox News reportedly directs consular officers to refuse visas under existing law while the department reassesses screening and vetting procedures.
The countries include Bhutan, Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, 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 pause will begin Jan. 21 and will continue indefinitely until the department conducts a reassessment of immigrant visa processing. In November, Trump had vowed to pause migration from all “Third World Countries” following a shooting near the White House by an Afghan national that killed a National Guard member.
While India is notably absent from this specific “freeze list,” the indirect fallout for Indian nationals cannot be ruled out. The sudden pivot to extreme “self-sufficiency” standards may create a de facto barrier for thousands of Indian families, particularly those seeking to bring over elderly parents or relatives with chronic health conditions who are now viewed through the lens of potential financial liability. Furthermore, as the State Department reassigns its global consular staff to overhaul screening for the 75 restricted nations, India’s already strained visa infrastructure faces a total administrative bottleneck. With major U.S. tech firms already freezing non-essential travel and outsourcing giants moving training programs stateside to avoid year-long stamping delays, the Indian professional class is effectively being locked into place while the system reassesses its priorities.
The sheer scale of the backlog further complicates this landscape, as over 1.2 million Indian nationals currently remain trapped in a legal and administrative purgatory for employment-based green cards alone. These applicants, along with hundreds of thousands more in family-sponsored categories, are facing stagnant priority dates that have barely moved in the February 2026 Visa Bulletin. For the Indian diaspora, the near future is defined by a “double squeeze”: a massive, existing backlog meeting a new, high-intensity vetting regime that views aging or illness as a disqualifying financial risk.
Somalia has drawn heightened scrutiny from federal officials following a sweeping fraud scandal centered in Minnesota, where prosecutors uncovered massive abuse of taxpayer-funded benefit programs. Many of those involved are Somali nationals or Somali-Americans.
In November 2025, a State Department cable sent to posts around the globe instructed consular officers to enforce sweeping new screening rules under the so-called “public charge” provision of immigration law.
The guidance instructs consular officers to deny visas to applicants deemed likely to rely on public benefits, weighing a wide range of factors including health, age, English proficiency, finances and even potential need for long-term medical care.
Older or overweight applicants could be denied, along with those who had any past use of government cash assistance or institutionalization.
“The State Department will use its long-standing authority to deem ineligible potential immigrants who would become a public charge on the United States and exploit the generosity of the American people,” State Department spokesperson Tommy Piggott said in a statement.
“Immigration from these 75 countries will be paused while the State Department reassess immigration processing procedures to prevent the entry of foreign nationals who would take welfare and public benefits.”
Also Read: Food, Faith and Fascism in New India https://www.vibesofindia.com/food-faith-and-fascism-in-new-india/
