In accordance with Presidential Proclamation 10998 on border and national security, part of the visa program for Nigerian nationals will be temporarily suspended beginning January 1, 2026.
Under the proclamation titled “Restricting and Limiting the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the Security of the United States,” the US Mission in Nigeria informed yesterday that the restrictions will take effect at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Standard Time.
Channels TV claims that 19 countries will be impacted by the move, including Nigeria, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Burundi, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Dominica, Gabon, The Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Senegal, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Venezuela, and Zambia.
Visas for nonimmigrant visitors (B-1/B-2), students (F, M, and J), and exchange visitors (E-V) are partially suspended as a result of the proclamation. With few exceptions, it is also applicable to immigrant visas.
Eligible US government employees, participants in certain major international sporting events, Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs), immigrants from Iran who are members of religious or ethnic minorities who are persecuted in their home country, and dual nationals whose passports are not affected by the suspension are among the exceptions.
Only foreign people who are not in the US on the effective date and do not possess a valid US visa will be subject to the suspension.
Executive Order 10998 does not apply to foreign people, even those already outside the US, who possess valid visas as of the decree’s effective date. The announcement stated that no visas that were issued prior to January 1, 2026, at 12:01 a.m. EST had been or will be withdrawn in accordance with the Proclamation.
The new regulations state that Nigerians applying for a visa “may be ineligible for visa issuance or admission to the United States,” but they are not forbidden from applying or attending interviews.
The announcement is part of a string of recent US actions that have an impact on Nigerian citizens.
Nigeria was once again placed on the US list of nations accused of breaching religious freedom in October. This decision was made in response to the country’s ongoing insecurity and assaults on Christian communities.
As a result, some entrance restrictions were imposed on Nigerian nationals after the country was added to a new US travel ban list.
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