Expansion of Travel Restricted Countries
16 December 2025
Background: In June 2025, the Trump Administration imposed full travel restrictions on citizens from 12 countries under Presidential Proclamation 10949.
The new Presidential Proclamation (PP) 10998, issued on December 15, 2025, can be found here: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/12/restricting-and-limiting-the-entry-of-foreign-nationals-to-protect-the-security-of-the-united-states/
PP 10998 imposes the following restrictions:
Fully restricts entry to the U.S. for citizens from 20 countries:
Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Laos, Mali, Niger, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Yemen, Syria, and foreign nationals traveling with travel documents endorsed or issued by the Palestinian-Authority-issued travel document.
Partially restricts entry to the U.S. for citizens from 19 countries:
Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burundi, Cote d’Ivoire, Cuba, Dominica, Gabon, The Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
On 19 December, 2025, The U.S. Department of State provided clarification of its interpretation of the Proclamation restrictions. On their website, they state:
“Presidential Proclamation 10998 only applies to foreign nationals who are outside the United States on the effective date AND do not hold a valid visa on the effective date (January 1, 2026 at 12:01 a.m. EST).
Foreign nationals, even those outside the United States, who hold valid visas as of the effective date are NOT subject to Presidential Proclamation 10998. No visas issued before January 1, 2026 at 12:01 a.m. EST, have been or will be revoked pursuant to the Proclamation.
Visa applicants who are subject to Presidential Proclamation 10998 may still submit visa applications and schedule interviews, but they may be ineligible for visa issuance or admission to the United States.
For more details, please read our Insights Report.
Please be sure to consult with your international student office prior to making travel plans if you are a citizen from one of these affected countries.
