The U.S. State Division mentioned Wednesday it’ll droop the processing of immigrant visas for residents of 75 international locations whose nationals are deemed more likely to require public help whereas residing in the US.
The State Division, led by Secretary Marco Rubio, mentioned it had instructed consular officers to halt immigrant visa purposes from the international locations affected in accordance with a broader order issued in November that tightened guidelines round potential immigrants who may turn into “public fees” within the U.S.
The suspension, which can start Jan. 21, is not going to apply to candidates looking for non-immigrant visas, or non permanent vacationer or enterprise visas.
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“The Trump administration is bringing an finish to the abuse of America’s immigration system by those that would extract wealth from the American folks,” the division mentioned in a press release. “Immigrant visa processing from these 75 international locations will likely be paused whereas the State Division reassess immigration processing procedures to forestall the entry of overseas nationals who would take welfare and public advantages.”
The assertion didn’t establish which international locations can be affected by the pause, however President Donald Trump’s administration has already severely restricted immigrant and non-immigrant visa processing for residents of dozens of nations, lots of them in Africa.
A U.S. official mentioned the checklist included Russia, Iran and Somalia in addition to Afghanistan, Brazil and Egypt, amongst others. The official spoke on the situation of anonymity as a result of the checklist had not been made public but.
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