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Quick Hits
- Effective January 21, 2026, the State Department will pause issuance of immigrant visas to applicants from seventy-five designated countries.
- Nonimmigrant visas (e.g., H-1B, L-1, TN, and B-1/B-2) will continue to be processed and are not impacted by this directive.
Scope and Designated Countries
The seventy-five countries impacted by the announcement include:
Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia, Brazil, Burma, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Colombia, Congo, Cuba, Dominica, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Nepal, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Republic of the Congo, Russia, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, and Yemen.
The processing pause will impact the cases that are currently pending on January 21, 2026, and any new cases going forward until it is lifted. Foreign nationals from the designated countries will still be able to submit immigrant visa applications and attend interviews during the State Department’s pause.
Immigrant visas issued prior to the announcement have not been revoked.
Nonimmigrant visas (e.g., H-1B, L-1, TN, and B-1/B-2) will continue to be processed and are not impacted by this directive.
Exceptions
Immigrant visas will continue to be issued to dual nationals who apply using a valid passport from a country not affected by the directive.
Impact
The State Department will continue to schedule immigrant visa interviews for nationals of the affected countries, but no immigrant visas will be issued until the policy review is complete. The government has not provided a timeframe within which the review should be completed.
This announcement is limited to the issuance of immigrant visas abroad. It should not impact employees in the United States applying for permanent residence through the Adjustment of Status process via Form I-485. Form I-485 applications may, however, be subject to an administrative pause pursuant to USCIS’s January 1, 2026 “hold and review” policy, impacting foreign nationals from thirty-nine specified countries.
Ogletree Deakins’ Immigration Practice Group will monitor developments with respect to these and other policy changes and will post updates on the Immigration blog as additional information becomes available.
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