On December 16, 2025, the Trump administration issued a Proclamation expanding and revising restrictions on the entry of foreign nationals from designated countries and territories.  An earlier Proclamation, effective June 9, 2025, designated a list of 19 countries subject to full or partial bans on entry to the U.S.   New rules and restrictions on 20 additional countries are effective January 1, 2026 at 12:01 EDT.

Please see the list of designated countries and information regarding the scope of restrictions and exceptions below.

Fully Restricted Countries
As of June 9, 2025, entry to the U.S. as nonimmigrants or immigrants is suspended for nationals of the following countries:

• • Afghanistan
• • Burma
• • Chad
• • Republic of Congo
• • Equatorial Guinea
• • Eritrea
• • Haiti
• • Iran
• • Libya
• • Somalia
• • Sudan
• • Yemen

Effective January 1, 2026, entry to the U.S. as nonimmigrants or immigrants is also suspended for nationals of the following countries:

• • Burkina Faso
• • Laos (formerly subject to partial visa restrictions)
• • Mali
• • Niger
• • Sierra Leone (formerly subject to partial visa restrictions)
• • South Sudan
• • Syria

Foreign nationals with Palestinian Authority-issued or endorsed travel documents are also subject to restrictions on entry as nonimmigrants or immigrants.

Partially Restricted Countries

Entry to the U.S. pursuant to an immigrant visa or on a B-1, B-2, B-1/B-2 (business visitor/tourist), F and M (student), and J (exchange visitor) visa is suspended for nationals from the countries listed below.

The following countries designated in June 2025 remain on the list of partially restricted countries:

• • Burundi
• • Cuba
• • Togo
• • Venezuela

Effective January 1, 2026, partially restricted countries include:

• • Angola
• • Antigua and Barbuda
• • Benin
• • Cote d’Ivoire
• • Dominica
• • Gabon
• • The Gambia
• • Malawi
• • Mauritania
• • Nigeria
• • Senegal
• • Tanzania
• • Tonga
• • Zambia
• • Zimbabwe

For Turkmenistan, restrictions on nonimmigrant visas imposed in June were lifted, but immigrant visa restrictions remain in place.

The new entry restrictions apply to foreign nationals from the designated countries who:

• • are outside of the U.S. on January 1, 2026 and
• • do not have a valid visa on January 1, 2026.

Exceptions to Travel Restrictions
The new Proclamation revises and, for some visa categories, limits the scope of prior exceptions. Under the new Proclamation, entry restrictions do not apply to:

• • U.S. lawful permanent residents;
• • Dual nationals of a restricted country when the individual is traveling on a passport issued by non-restricted country;
• • Foreign nationals traveling with a valid nonimmigrant visa in the following classifications: A-1, A-2, C-2, C-3, G-1, G-2, G-3, G-4, NATO-1, NATO-2, NATO-3, NATO-4, NATO-5, or NATO-6;
• • Any athlete or member of an athletic team, including coaches, persons performing a necessary support role, and immediate relatives, traveling for the World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting event as determined by the Secretary of State;
• • Special Immigrant Visas for United States government employees; and
• • Immigrant visas for ethnic and religious minorities facing persecution in Iran.

Notably, effective January 1, 2026, the new order no longer provides exceptions for those seeking entry on Immediate Relative immigrant visas, adoption-related immigrant visas (IR-3, IR-4, IH-3, IH-4) or Afghan Special Immigrant Visas.

The proclamation does not apply to any individual already granted asylum, refugees already admitted to the United States, or to individuals granted withholding of removal or protection under the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment of Punishment (CAT). Nothing in the proclamation is intended to limit the rights of an individual to seek asylum, refugee status, withholding of removal, or protection under the CAT, consistent with the laws of the United States.

Additionally, the proclamation explicitly provides that no immigrant or nonimmigrant visa issued before the effective date shall be revoked pursuant to the proclamation. However, the fact that the visa has not been revoked does not mean it will remain valid for entry to the U.S. after the effective date.  Visas may be revoked for other reasons.

Discretionary Exceptions

The proclamation provides for a “national interest” exemption in cases where the Attorney General or the Secretary of State finds travel would be in the national interest of the United States. A national interest exemption is discretionary. The proclamation does not specify the scope of such exemptions and the procedure to request an exemption.

Periodic Review
The Department of State, the Department of Homeland Security and the Director for National Intelligence will periodically review whether the restrictions should be continued, terminated, modified or supplemented within 180 days of the proclamation and every 180 days thereafter.

Impact

Nationals from the designated countries should confer with legal counsel to understand the scope and impact of the travel restrictions on their unique situation prior to departing the U.S. Impacted foreign nationals who are outside of the U.S. should confer with counsel to plan return prior to January 1, 2026, the effective date of the proclamation, where feasible.

Nationals of travel ban countries based on citizenship and those born in any of the designated travel ban countries listed above may be subject to a pause on the processing of immigration benefits announced by USCIS in early December 2025.  The pause on USCIS processing may impact individuals from designated countries even if they are not restricted from travel and entry to the U.S.

We understand the tremendous impact of travel bans on individuals and families whose lives are disrupted.  We will continue to advocate for our clients on an individual and policy level.

We will continue to monitor the implementation of travel restrictions and provide updates as they become available. For additional information or specific legal advice, please contact your Van Der Hout representative.