US suspending immigrant visa processing for 75 countries

By Jennifer Hansler, CNN

(CNN) — The United States is indefinitely suspending immigrant visa processing from 75 countries in another expansion of the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration.

The pause in processing will apply to countries including Brazil, Colombia, Egypt, Haiti, Somalia and Russia. The suspension applies to immigrant visas, such as those for employment or to join family in the US. The pause does not apply to non-immigrant visas like student and tourist visas, and as such would not apply for those seeking to travel to the World Cup in the US this summer.

The pause will begin on January 21, a US official said.

The suspension comes after the State Department last year directed increased scrutiny under the “public charge” provision of immigration law meant to target those who the Trump administration believes will become a strain on public resources.

“The State Department will use its long-standing authority to deem ineligible potential immigrants who would become a public charge on the United States and exploit the generosity of the American people,” State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in a statement Wednesday.

“Immigrant visa processing from these 75 countries will be paused while the State Department reassess immigration processing procedures to prevent the entry of foreign nationals who would take welfare and public benefits,” he said.

A number of the countries impacted by the visa processing suspension were already included as part of the administration’s expanded travel ban list.

According to a US official, the countries impacted by the suspension in immigrant visa processing are Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia, Brazil, Burma, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Colombia, Cote d’Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, 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.

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