The United States Government has temporarily suspended the processing of several legal immigration applications, including permanent residency and citizenship requests, affecting Nigerians and nationals of numerous other countries newly added to a sweeping travel restriction order.
Okay News reports that the pause targets applicants from selected African and Asian nations and represents a major expansion of immigration controls under the administration of United States President, Donald Trump, the forty fifth and Forty Seventh President of the United States of America.
According to information published by Canadian broadcaster CBC News, the decision primarily impacts individuals who are already living legally in the United States and are attempting to adjust their immigration status or pursue American citizenship through established legal channels.
Earlier in December, the Trump administration instructed the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, the federal agency responsible for overseeing lawful immigration and naturalization, to completely freeze all immigration petitions from nationals of nineteen countries listed under a presidential travel ban initially announced in June. That directive covered applications for permanent residency, commonly referred to as green cards, and naturalization.
The action followed a violent incident during the Thanksgiving week in Washington, District of Columbia, the capital of the United States, where two members of the United States National Guard were shot. Authorities alleged that the attacker was an Afghan national, an incident that the administration cited while unveiling a series of tightened immigration restrictions.
In addition to the immigration freeze, the United States Government suspended the processing of asylum claims under the jurisdiction of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services and halted visa and immigration applications from Afghan nationals.
On Tuesday, President Trump further expanded the travel ban to include twenty additional countries. Under the latest proclamation, citizens of five new nations now face full entry bans, while fifteen others are subjected to partial entry restrictions.
A senior United States official, who spoke anonymously to Journalists due to the sensitivity of internal policy discussions, confirmed that United States Citizenship and Immigration Services has extended its suspension to cover nationals from the newly added countries.
The countries facing full bans under the expanded proclamation include Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, South Sudan, and Syria. Partial restrictions apply to nationals from Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Dominica, Gabon, Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Tonga, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Previously affected nations included Afghanistan, Burundi, Chad, Cuba, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Laos, Myanmar, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Yemen, and Venezuela. In the latest update, Laos and Sierra Leone were moved from partial restriction status to full entry bans.
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services Director, Joseph Edlow, appeared to acknowledge the expanded measures in a public statement shared on social media.
“United States Citizenship and Immigration Services is conducting a comprehensive review of anyone from anywhere who poses a threat to the United States, including those identified in the President’s latest proclamation to restore law and order in our nation’s immigration system,” Edlow stated.
Analysts note that the cumulative effect of the proclamation now impacts nationals from more than sixty percent of African countries and roughly twenty percent of countries worldwide.
While the Trump administration insists the measures are necessary to strengthen national security and address vetting concerns, the decision has sparked criticism among Nigerians at home and in the diaspora. Many commentators described the move as discriminatory and diplomatically damaging, warning of possible economic and bilateral consequences.
Former Nigerian Senator, Shehu Sani, criticized the policy, describing it as “a clear signal that migrants from developing countries are no longer welcome.”
