DHS pauses immigration applications for an additional 20 countries : NPR
Immigrants prepare to become U.S. citizens during a naturalization service January 22, 2018 in Newark, New Jersey. Although much of the federal government was closed Monday morning, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) offices remained open across the country.
John Moore/Getty Images North America
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John Moore/Getty Images North America
The Department of Homeland Security is suspending immigration applications from 20 additional countries after an expansion of travel restrictions took effect on January 1.
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, or USCIS, in a note released Thursday, said it would suspend review of all pending visa, green card, citizenship, or asylum applications from immigrants from the additional countries. The memo also outlines plans to review immigration applications from these countries as early as 2021.
The list, made up mainly of African countries, includes Angola, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.
Last month, the Trump administration expanded the list of countries subject to travel restrictions to the United States from 19 to 39, in addition to the Palestinian Authority. The move comes as the administration exerts tighter control over those who have followed the legal steps to apply for permanent status in the United States.
“USCIS remains committed to ensuring that aliens from high-risk countries who have entered the United States do not pose risks to national security or public safety,” the memo said in justifying the pause and revisions. “To faithfully comply with U.S. immigration law, the flow of aliens from countries with high overstay rates, significant fraud, or both, must cease.”
There are a few exceptions outlined in the memo, including athletes and their team members competing in the World Cup and the 2026 Olympics, both hosted by the United States this year.
The administration first suggested it would expand restrictions after the arrest of an Afghan national suspected in the shootings of two National Guard soldiers over Thanksgiving weekend.
Towards the end of 2025, DHS has started taking steps to pause again and examine these legal migration routes. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the agency that oversees the processing of applications including visas, naturalization and asylum, announced that it will review the status of all people admitted to the United States as refugees under the Biden administration, reopening these cases.
The agency also previously announced an indefinite pause in all processing of asylum applications while it clears its backlog.
