The Trump administration is considering implementing travel restrictions for citizens from numerous countries as part of a potential new ban. According to sources familiar with the matter and an internal memo seen by Reuters, the administration is contemplating the ban on citizens of 41 countries, divided into three groups.
The first group, consisting of 10 countries like Afghanistan, Iran, Syria, Cuba, and North Korea, would face a full visa suspension. The second group, comprising five countries including Eritrea, Haiti, Laos, Myanmar, and South Sudan, would face partial suspensions affecting tourist and student visas, with some exceptions. The third group would include 26 countries like Belarus, Pakistan, and Turkmenistan, which would undergo consideration for a partial suspension of US visa issuance if their governments fail to address certain deficiencies within 60 days.
The list, which remains unapproved, might undergo changes. It comes after an executive order requiring enhanced security vetting of foreigners entering the US to detect national security threats, calling on cabinet members to create a list of countries for potential visa suspension.
During the previous Trump administration, in 2017, a partial ban on travelers from predominantly Muslim countries was criticized as a “Muslim ban.” Fourteen months before, Trump had advocated for a complete shutdown of Muslims entering the US following an Islamic State-inspired mass shooting in San Bernardino, California.
New restrictions in the memo align with the president’s commitments to tighten immigration. In October 2023, Trump pledged to restrict individuals from countries like the Gaza Strip, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Yemen, and any other region that poses a threat to security. Any ban on immigration from the list of 43 countries would accompany Department of Homeland Security efforts to deport undocumented migrants with ties to terrorist groups.
The Trump administration is also moving to cancel the immigration status and deport foreign-born university graduates, including a Columbia University graduate who led campus protests against Israel’s war in Gaza last year.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/15/trump-administration-travel-restrictions
