In one of the most sweeping immigration actions of his second term, President Donald Trump ordered the Department of State to pause issuance of all new immigrant visas to applicants from 75 countries beginning 21 January 2026. According to a State Department cable reviewed by Reuters, consular officers world-wide have been instructed to deny any immigrant visa that has not yet been printed, even if it was previously approved. The administration says the affected countries—spanning Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, South Asia, and parts of Eastern Europe—have high rates of welfare usage among recent immigrants and therefore pose an unacceptable "public-charge" risk. (reuters.com)
Trump officials emphasize that the pause does not extend to non-immigrant categories such as B-1/B-2 visitors, H-1B professionals, F-1 students, or J-1 exchange visitors; however, business-travel groups note that the same countries often struggle with long appointment backlogs for those categories, raising concerns about ripple effects on corporate travel. The State Department says it will conduct a “top-to-bottom review” during the pause and may reinstate processing for countries that agree to improved data-sharing on applicants’ tax compliance and proof of financial self-sufficiency.
Immigration attorneys warn that the order could bar roughly 315,000 family- and employment-based immigrants over the next 12 months, disrupting U.S. hiring plans and family-reunification pipelines. Employers that rely on multinational transfer programs worry that the new scrutiny on dependents’ ability to remain off public benefits could lengthen consular reviews and raise the risk of refusals. Several U.S. universities with pipeline programs in Nigeria, Pakistan, and Brazil have already convened emergency webinars to advise affected students who planned to adjust status after graduation.
![U.S. suspends immigrant visa processing for citizens of 75 countries]()
Amid this uncertainty, specialized visa-service platforms such as VisaHQ can help companies and families audit pending cases, receive real-time policy alerts, and map out alternative filing strategies. Its U.S. portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-states/) offers country-specific checklists and live support that can identify non-immigrant options or adjustment-of-status pathways while the 75-nation freeze remains in effect.
Human-rights advocates point out that the administration’s own data show immigrants use most means-tested benefits at lower per-capita rates than native-born Americans. They predict a rise in green-card applications filed inside the United States—where the public-charge test is administered by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) rather than consular officers—in order to sidestep the freeze. USCIS, however, is already facing historic case-backlogs and fee-funding shortfalls.
For global-mobility managers, the immediate priority is to identify employees or dependents whose immigrant-visa appointments fall on or after 21 January, communicate the risk of cancellation, and, where feasible, convert filings to adjustment-of-status inside the United States. Companies with diversity-hire targets that include talent from the listed countries may need to update workforce-planning models and explore alternative work-visa strategies.
Trump officials emphasize that the pause does not extend to non-immigrant categories such as B-1/B-2 visitors, H-1B professionals, F-1 students, or J-1 exchange visitors; however, business-travel groups note that the same countries often struggle with long appointment backlogs for those categories, raising concerns about ripple effects on corporate travel. The State Department says it will conduct a “top-to-bottom review” during the pause and may reinstate processing for countries that agree to improved data-sharing on applicants’ tax compliance and proof of financial self-sufficiency.
Immigration attorneys warn that the order could bar roughly 315,000 family- and employment-based immigrants over the next 12 months, disrupting U.S. hiring plans and family-reunification pipelines. Employers that rely on multinational transfer programs worry that the new scrutiny on dependents’ ability to remain off public benefits could lengthen consular reviews and raise the risk of refusals. Several U.S. universities with pipeline programs in Nigeria, Pakistan, and Brazil have already convened emergency webinars to advise affected students who planned to adjust status after graduation.
Amid this uncertainty, specialized visa-service platforms such as VisaHQ can help companies and families audit pending cases, receive real-time policy alerts, and map out alternative filing strategies. Its U.S. portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-states/) offers country-specific checklists and live support that can identify non-immigrant options or adjustment-of-status pathways while the 75-nation freeze remains in effect.
Human-rights advocates point out that the administration’s own data show immigrants use most means-tested benefits at lower per-capita rates than native-born Americans. They predict a rise in green-card applications filed inside the United States—where the public-charge test is administered by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) rather than consular officers—in order to sidestep the freeze. USCIS, however, is already facing historic case-backlogs and fee-funding shortfalls.
For global-mobility managers, the immediate priority is to identify employees or dependents whose immigrant-visa appointments fall on or after 21 January, communicate the risk of cancellation, and, where feasible, convert filings to adjustment-of-status inside the United States. Companies with diversity-hire targets that include talent from the listed countries may need to update workforce-planning models and explore alternative work-visa strategies.
