What’s Happening
On January 14, 2026, The Department of State (DOS) announced on its official X account a suspension of immigrant visa processing for nationals of 75 countries deemed likely to require public assistance while living in the United States. According to DOS’s post, the suspension is indefinite and “will remain active until the U.S. can ensure that new immigrants will not extract wealth from the American people”. Fox News, Forbes, and other new outlets are reporting that an internal DOS cable instructs consular officers to stop processing immigrant visa applications for individuals from the affected countries beginning on January 21, 2026, though this date has not been confirmed and the processing suspension could go into effect at any time absent further information from the State Department.
What You Need to Know
Who is Affected
Per DOS’s post, the suspension is limited to immigrant visas processed abroad at U.S. consulates. Forbes also reports that DOS has confirmed that the visa suspension will not apply to temporary tourist or business visas though this has not been confirmed by DOS.
It does not appear that individuals from one of the listed countries seeking adjustment of status from within the United States would be impacted by this particular suspension. However, adjustment of status applicants subject to the mandatory adjudicative hold for individuals from travel ban countries would see their application impacted.
The 75 Countries
While the government has not published an official list of the 75 countries, media reporting indicates that the affected countries include the following:
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.
Roughly a third of these countries are already on the list of travel ban countries, with either full or partial entry restrictions. Those that are new additions not currently subject to a travel ban and the associated adjudicative hold are flagged in bold in the above list.
The Rationale
This development is consistent with the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) proposed regulation that seeks a more expansive interpretation of the statutory public charge ground of inadmissibility that bars entry or permanent residency status for foreign nationals deemed likely to rely on U.S. government resources, such as certain types of cash and food aid. This proposal followed reports that DOS had issued internal guidance instructing consular officers to place greater emphasis on an applicant’s health when evaluating potential public charge concerns.
This is also in line with President Trump’s November 2025 post on social media stating that he will permanently pause immigration from certain countries he deemed as “third world countries”.
At this time, however, other than the post from DOS’s official X account, there are no other official government statements regarding the nature and scope of the suspension.
D&S is continuing to monitor this developing situation and will provide updates as they become available.