The United States Embassy in Nigeria has announced a partial suspension of visa issuance beginning January 1, 2026.
The announcement was made on Monday night via the Embassy’s official X (formerly Twitter) account, confirming that Nigeria is among 19 countries affected by a new immigration directive issued by former U.S. President Donald Trump.
According to the statement, the suspension takes effect at 12:01 a.m. EST on January 1, 2026, in line with Presidential Proclamation 10998, titled “Restricting and Limiting the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the Security of the United States.”
Under the directive, the U.S. Department of State will partially suspend visa issuance for nationals of the following countries: Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burundi, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Dominica, Gabon, The Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Venezuela, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
The suspension applies to:
Nonimmigrant B-1/B-2 visitor visas
F, M, and J student and exchange visitor visas
All immigrant visas, with limited exceptions
The Embassy outlined specific exemptions to the suspension, including:
Immigrant visas for ethnic and religious minorities facing persecution in Iran
Dual nationals applying with passports from countries not subject to the suspension
Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs) for eligible U.S. government employees under 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(27)(D)
Participants in certain major international sporting events
Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs) of the United States
The Embassy did not indicate how long the partial suspension would remain in effect.
