State Department spokesman says Trump administration is ending abuse of US immigration system
The Trump administration is suspending all visa processing for applicants from 75 countries including Pakistan. The US State Department did not elaborate on the plan, first reported by Fox News on Wednesday, which cited a State Department memo.
Potential list of countries includes Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, 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, according to the report.
The pause will begin on January 21, Fox News said.
The memo directs US embassies to refuse visas under existing law while the department reassesses its procedures. No time frame was provided.
“The Trump administration is bringing an end to the abuse of America’s immigration system by those who would extract wealth from the American people,” State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said.
The State Department will pause immigrant visa processing from 75 countries whose migrants take welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates. The freeze will remain active until the U.S. can ensure that new immigrants will not extract wealth from the American people.
— Department of State (@StateDept) January 14, 2026
“Immigrant visa processing from these 75 countries will be paused while the State Department reassesses immigration processing procedures to prevent the entry of foreign nationals who would take welfare and public benefits,” he said.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted on X that the countries affected would include Somalia — whose people Trump has attacked in heated terms after immigrants were involved in a funding scandal in Minnesota — as well as Russia and Iran.
Trump has made no secret of his desire to reduce immigration by people who are not of European descent. He has described Somalis as “garbage” who should “go back to where they came from” and instead said he was open to Scandinavians moving to the United States.
The State Department said Monday that it has revoked more than 100,000 visas since Trump’s return, a one-year record.
The Department of Homeland Security last month said that the Trump administration has deported more than 605,000 people, and that 2.5 million others left on their own.
The latest move does not affect tourist, business or other visas, including for soccer fans seeking to visit for this year’s World Cup, although the Trump administration has vowed to vet all applicants’ social media histories.
