The administration of US President Donald Trump is preparing to impose a general visa ban on Nigeria and up to 35 other countries, most of them in Africa, according to an internal memo obtained by the Washington Post.
The document, signed by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, outlines a proposal that would see travel restrictions or outright entry bans placed on nations deemed non-compliant with new benchmarks set by the State Department. These countries have been given a 60-day deadline to submit an initial plan of action or risk being added to an expanded US travel ban list.
Countries reportedly under review include Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and others, along with small island nations such as Saint Lucia, Vanuatu, and Tonga.
According to the memo, the Trump administration identified a range of concerns, including the absence of “competent or cooperative central government authority to produce reliable identity documents,” and instances of “widespread government fraud.”
The latest list expands on a March proposal in which Nigeria was not initially included. That earlier proposal categorised 43 countries into red, orange, and yellow groups based on the severity of their visa restrictions.
President Trump is reportedly considering a full ban for countries in the “red” category, with severely limited visa access for those in “orange”, and a 60-day compliance window for the “yellow” group — which now includes Nigeria.
Officials say the policy forms part of broader efforts to enhance US border security and enforce more stringent immigration controls as would be sharply restricted.
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