United States Suspends Visa Processing for Nigeria, 74 Other Countries
Emmanuel Femi Adedayo 
Former U.S. President Donald Trump addresses a member of the news media after attending a border security briefing with Texas Governor Greg Abbott to discuss security at the U.S. southern border with Mexico in Weslaco, Texas, U.S. June 30, 2021.
United States Government has directed it’s embassies and consulates around the world to suspend processing visa applications from Nigeria, Russia and at least 73 other countries.
The US Department of State has directed consular officers to pause visa processing for the affected countries from January 21, pending a broad reassessment of screening and vetting procedures.
The directive was contained in an internal memo first reported by Fox News.
Under the instruction, visa officers are to refuse applications using existing provisions of US immigration law while the review is ongoing.
The pause applies across multiple visa categories and will remain in force indefinitely until the reassessment is completed.
The countries affected span Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Europe and Latin America, and include Nigeria, Somalia, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Yemen, Afghanistan, Russia, Brazil and Thailand.
The policy shift is linked to the “public charge” rule, a long-standing element of US immigration law that allows authorities to deny visas to individuals considered likely to rely on public benefits.
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