The United States Embassy in Nigeria on Monday night confirmed that it will partially suspend visa issuance from January 1, 2026.
The development was confirmed via a post on its official X page [Formerly Twitter]
Nigeria is one of 19 countries affected by President Donald Trump’s new directive on immigration.
The tweet read: “Effective January 1, 2026, at 12:01 a.m. EST, in line with Presidential Proclamation 10998 on ‘Restricting and Limiting the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the Security of the United States,’ the Department of State is partially suspending visa issuance to nationals of 19 countries – Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burundi, Cote D’Ivoire, Cuba, Dominica, Gabon, The Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Venezuela, Zambia, and Zimbabwe – for nonimmigrant B-1/B-2 visitor visas and F, M, J student and exchange visitor visas, and all immigrant visas with limited exceptions for:
• Immigrant visas for ethnic and religious minorities facing persecution in Iran
• Dual nationals applying with a passport of a nationality not subject to a suspension
• Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs) for U.S. government employees under 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(27)(D)
• Participants in certain major sporting events
• Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs).”
The US government had earlier directed the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to suspend green card and citizenship applications filed by Nigerians and nationals of other countries newly added to the expanded US “travel ban,” citing national security concerns and an ongoing review of immigration vetting processes.
The order follows a proclamation signed by President Donald Trump on Tuesday, further restricting entry into the United States for nationals from countries deemed high-risk due to what it described as “demonstrated, persistent, and severe deficiencies in screening, vetting, and information-sharing” that threaten US national security and public safety.
Trump had earlier, on October 31, declared Nigeria a “country of particular concern” following allegations of a Christian genocide in the country.
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