Trump Administration Halts Visa Processing for 75 Countries Over ‘Public Charge’ Concerns

The State Department is pausing immigrant visa processing for 75 countries where immigrants are deemed likely to become a “public charge,” a State Department official confirmed to The Daily Signal.

President Donald Trump’s State Department has directed consular officers to refuse visas starting Jan. 21, while the agency reassesses screening and vetting procedures, Fox News first reported.

The move aims to “prevent the entry of foreign nationals who would become a public charge on the American people.”

The countries affected include Somalia, Russia, Afghanistan, Brazil, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Nigeria, Thailand, and Yemen.

Federal officials have uncovered massive welfare fraud schemes in Minnesota in recent years that one prosecutor estimated could exceed $9 billion. Of the 98 people who have been charged so far for welfare fraud, 85 are of Somali descent.

Consular officers have been directed to deny visas to applicants who they determine are likely to rely on public benefits. Factors for consideration include health, age, English proficiency, finances, potential need for long-term medical care, and past reliance on government aid.

Only “very limited” exceptions to the pause will be allowed, and only after an applicant has passed public charge considerations.

“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 Pigott said.

The full list of countries where visas will be denied includes Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, the 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.