What you Need To Know About The New US Travel Ban

US President Donald Trump has expanded the travel restrictions to America to now exclude issuing visas that lead to residency for nationals of Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria, Sudan, Myanmar and Tanzania. It has also stopped the issue of ‘diversity visas’ – visas issued countries that have historically low immigration to the US – to those from Tanzania and Sudan.

There’s also been a travel ban addition that prevents Chinese citizens with US study or work visas from returning to the US after leaving. Considering that many left to celebrate Chinese New Year in January, this has affected a huge number of people. This ban does not apply to the immediate families of American citizens or permanent US residents.

The current travel ban bars citizens of Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria and Yemen, plus some Venezuelan officials and their relatives, from gaining a visa that could lead to US residency. Chad Wolf, the acting secretary of homeland security in the USA, has stated that these countries are currently failing to comply with US security requirements.

By far, the biggest backlash so far has been from Nigeria. As an anti-terrorism partner of the US, most populous country in the continent and a large economic contributor in Africa, Nigeria’s exclusion from the US will make a huge impact to those living in both countries.

It’s likely that these travel bans will be subject to change soon. Nigerian officials have stated that they are working to address the security issues that the US have outlined, such as sharing data of immigrant criminal records and information on stolen passports. As with the earlier travel bans that were put in place in 2017, they are likely to change and adapt based on international relations and the decisions of the courts as to whether they are permissible.

If you’re currently awaiting a travel visa, you are likely to be exempt from the new restrictions as they do not come into force until February 22nd. As long as your visa arrives before this date, this will not affect you. If your visa arrives after this, it is subject to the new restrictions but could be eligible for a waiver.

Nevertheless, non-immigrant visas from the banned countries are still being issued as normal. If you’re a national of any of the banned countries who intends to visit on a tourism or work visa, the process has not changed.

If you’d like to know the most up-to-date information about the travel regulations to the US or any other country, speak to an expert at DJB Passports and Visas. It’s our business to know the newest information for our customers.