The United States said on Wednesday that it was halting the processing of immigrant visas from 75 countries, which included Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Iran and Somalia.
It was president Donald Trump’s latest move against foreigners seeking to come to the United States, reports Fox News.
‘US freezes all visa processing for 75 countries, including Somalia, Russia, Iran,’ press secretary Karoline Leavitt posted on X, giving a link to a Fox News article.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh information adviser Sayeda Rizwana Hasan said in Dhaka on Thursday that the government would take necessary steps through the diplomatic channel for negotiation with US authorities following the decision to freeze immigrant visa processing for Bangladesh among other countries.
‘Our foreign ministry and national security adviser will obviously work out a work plan to engage with the United States as the decision was just announced yesterday,’ Rizwana said while responding to reporters’ questions at the secretariat.
When asked whether Bangladesh had failed in any area that led the country to this situation, Rizwana said that the move was not targeting Bangladesh alone.
‘The US government has explained the reasons that such restrictions will be imposed on countries from which large numbers of immigrants go to the US and seek political asylum or become dependent on their social services largely,’ she said.
On Wednesday, the US State Department, led by secretary of state Marco Rubio, said that consular offices have been instructed to halt immigrant visa processing for nationals of the affected countries under an order tightening scrutiny of applicants who could become ‘public charges’ in the United States.
The move follows broader immigration restrictions introduced by the administration of president Donald Trump and expands earlier travel and visa limitations imposed on nearly 40 countries.
Officials said that the decision was aimed at preventing what they described as abuse of the US immigration system.
Fox News reported that the US State Department was pausing all visa processing for 75 countries, including Somalia, Russia, Afghanistan, Brazil, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Nigeria, Thailand and Yemen.
The pause will come into effect on January 21 and will continue indefinitely until the department conducts a reassessment of visa processing, according to the report.
The full list of countries comprises Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, the Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia, Brazil, Burma, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, the 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, the 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.
The report says that the guidance instructs consular officers to deny visas to applicants deemed likely to rely on public benefits, weighing a wide range of factors including health, age, English proficiency, finances and even potential need for long-term medical care.
Older or overweight applicants could be denied, along with those who had any past use of government cash assistance or institutionalisation, it reports.
‘Immigration 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,’ the report said.
The US has, meanwhile, expanded a visa bond policy to include Bangladesh and 24 other countries, requiring citizens of these nations to post refundable bonds of up to $15,000 as part of their application for a US visitor visa, according to the US State Department website.
Under the updated programme, passport holders from the newly added countries could be asked to pay a bond of $5,000, $10,000, or $15,000 at the time of their visa interview if they are otherwise eligible for a B1/B2 tourism or business visa.
The US visa category B1 is for temporary business activities, while the B2 is for tourism purposes.
The list of affected countries now totals 38, mainly from South Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean.
