São Paulo, Brazil — The United States suspended on Wednesday the issuance of all visas to applicants from 75 countries, including 17 South America and Caribbean nations.
The statament published by the Department of State argued that immigrants must be “financially self-sufficient” and not be a “financial burden” to Americans, calling the banned nations high-risk countries. The measure will start to be effective on January 21.
“The State Department will pause immigrant visa processing from 75 countries whose migrants take welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates,” said a post shared by the organization on X. “The freeze will remain active until the U.S. can ensure that new immigrants will not extract wealth from the American people.”
Some of the countries include Brazil, Cuba, Colombia, Uruguay and Haiti. The act does not include tourist visas, which are still available for some of the countries listed.
Immigration Visas Suspended (Latin American and Caribbean Countries)
Antigua and Barbuda
Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Brazil
Colombia
Cuba
Dominica
Grenada
Guatemala
Haiti
Jamaica
Nicaragua
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Uruguay
According to the State Department, dual nationals applying with a valid passport of a country that is not listed above are exempt from the suspension.
The Trump administration has already revoked over 100,000 visas on January 12, including some 8,000 student visas and 2,500 specialized visas for individuals who had “encounters with U.S. law enforcement for criminal activity.”.
U.S. federal welfare programs have been open to immigrants for years now, including Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental Security Income (SSI) – for elderly –, and the Medicaid Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). This applie, for example, to refugees, Legal Permanent Residents/green card holders and children who were born in America, even if their parents were not.
Alongside the Department of State’s official statement, Washington says it is undergoing a full review of all policies and regulations to make sure the expenses are no longer a “public charge”.
See the whole list of countries below:
Afghanistan
Albania
Algeria
Antigua and Barbuda
Armenia
Azerbaijan
Bahamas
Bangladesh
Barbados
Belarus
Belize
Bhutan
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Brazil
Burma
Cambodia
Cameroon
Cape Verde
Colombia
Cote d’Ivoire
Cuba
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Dominica
Egypt
Eritrea
Ethiopia
Fiji
The Gambia
Georgia
Ghana
Grenada
Guatemala
Guinea
Haiti
Iran
Iraq
Jamaica
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kosovo
Kuwait
Kyrgyz Republic
Laos
Lebanon
Liberia
Libya
Moldova
Mongolia
Montenegro
Morocco
Nepal
Nicaragua
Nigeria
North Macedonia
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
Yemen
Featured image credit: Public Domain Pictures.