United States President Donald Trump has signed a new Proclamation expanding America’s travel ban, placing additional entry restrictions on foreign nationals from 15 more countries, including Nigeria.
The Proclamation, which Trump said is aimed at protecting the security of the United States, introduces partial entry restrictions on nationals of Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Dominica, Gabon, The Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Tonga, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The new order also maintains full travel restrictions on nationals of 12 countries previously classified as high-risk. These are Afghanistan, Burma (Myanmar), Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.
In addition, the Proclamation imposes full entry restrictions on five more countries following what U.S. authorities described as a recent security assessment.
The affected countries are Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, South Sudan and Syria. The order also applies to individuals travelling with Palestinian Authority–issued travel documents.
Two countries, Laos and Sierra Leone, which were previously under partial restrictions, have now been moved to the list of countries facing full entry limitations. Partial restrictions will, however, continue to apply to nationals of Burundi, Cuba, Togo and Venezuela.
Trump said Turkmenistan was granted limited relief under the new Proclamation after engaging productively with the United States and demonstrating significant progress.
As a result, the ban on non-immigrant visas for Turkmen nationals has been lifted, although restrictions on immigrant visas remain in place.
The Proclamation provides exemptions for lawful permanent residents, existing visa holders, diplomats, athletes and individuals whose entry is considered to be in the national interest of the United States.
It also tightens family-based immigrant visa provisions due to what U.S. authorities described as demonstrated fraud risks, while retaining the option for case-by-case waivers.
The expanded travel restrictions are expected to affect travel plans, visa processing and migration flows, particularly across Africa and parts of the Caribbean, with Nigeria among the most notable additions.
