Antigua & Barbuda and Dominica added to US travel ban list
Two Caribbean countries have been added to the list of foreign nationals with restricted entry into the US.
Antigua & Barbuda and Dominica were two of 39 countries impacted by a new proclamation that went into effect at the start of the new year.
The islands were given a “partial restriction and entry limitation” status that prevented nationals from seeking immigrant visas.
The proclamation also prevented non-immigrant visitor visas in the categories of B-1 [business], B-2 [tourism], B-1/B-2 [combination], F and M [student], and J [those on work and study-based exchange programmes, as well as their spouses and dependents].
They joined 17 countries, 15 of which were newly added, that were also given partial restriction. The majority of these countries were based in Africa.
The proclamation included exceptions for lawful permanent residents, existing visa holders, visa categories such as athletes and diplomats and those whose entries served US interests.
Family-based immigrant visa exceptions were restricted on the basis of “demonstrated fraud risks”, although case-by-case waivers were allowed.
• Full restrictions: Afghanistan (continued); Burkina Faso (new); Burma (continued); Chad (continued); Equatorial Guinea (continued); Eritrea (continued); Haiti (continued); Iran (continued); Laos (new, previously partially restricted); Libya (continued); Mali (new); Niger (new); Palestinian Authority (new); Republic of the Congo (continued); Sierra Leone (new, previously partially restricted); Somalia (continued); South Sudan (new); Sudan (continued); Syria (new); and Yemen (continued)
• Partial restrictions: Angola (new); Antigua & Barbuda (new); Benin (new); Burundi (continued); Cote d’Ivoire (new); Cuba (continued); Dominica (new); Gabon (new); The Gambia (new); Malawi (new); Mauritania (new); Nigeria (new); Senegal (new); Tanzania (new); Togo (continued); Tonga (new); Venezuela (continued); Zambia (new); and Zimbabwe (new)
The US Government released a fact sheet last month outlining the restrictions and their justifications.
The sheet said that Antigua & Barbuda, and Dominica, had a history of allowing citizenship by investment without residency, which the Government alleged could “conceal identity and bypass vetting requirements and travel restrictions”.
Other Caribbean nations included Haiti and Cuba.
Eighteen of the 39 listed countries were previously restricted to some degree, although two countries — Laos and Sierra Leone — were upgraded from partial restrictions to full restrictions.
Twenty-one countries were added to these lists.
The US Government listed several justifications for these restrictions, including weak or unreliable vetting systems, lack of co-operation, high visa-overstay rates and unstable law and order.
Several targeted countries have responded to these visa restrictions in kind, with Mali and Burkina Faso banning US citizens from entering the country.
Some news outlets have reported that Niger has permanently banned US citizens from entering the country, although no official statement from the Niger Government has confirmed this.
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