Trump Bans Citizenship Process for 7 More Countries; Partial Ban on 15

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced a complete ban on people from seven additional countries entering the United States. Restrictions have also been imposed on Palestinians. The decision followed an incident last month in which an Afghan refugee opened fire on National Guard personnel near the White House.

In addition, the US has placed partial restrictions on 15 other countries, limiting access to permanent residency. President Trump signed a proclamation to this effect on Tuesday, taking the total number of countries facing full or partial US travel bans to 39.

Travel restrictions were already in force for 19 countries. Of these, Laos and Sierra Leone, which earlier faced partial limits, have now been placed under full travel bans, raising the total number of fully banned countries to seven.

The administration said the move was necessary due to national security and public safety concerns, weak screening and vetting systems, and high rates of visa overstays. The new restrictions will come into effect from January 1.

The proclamation includes exemptions for US permanent residents, diplomats and athletes.
 

Turkmenistan Visa update

According to a White House fact sheet, the new proclamation imposes a complete travel ban on Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, South Sudan, and Syria. Palestinians are also fully restricted from entering the US.

Turkmenistan is the only country where the ban on non-immigrant visas has been lifted, although the ban on immigrant visas remains in effect.

Previously, the US had imposed a full travel ban on Afghanistan, Myanmar, Burundi, Chad, Congo, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, and Yemen.

In the new announcement, partial entry restrictions have been placed on 15 additional countries. The partial restrictions on Burundi, Cuba, Togo, and Venezuela will continue.

Exemptions for certain groups The proclamation allows case-by-case exemptions, but family-based immigrant visa exemptions have been limited due to potential fraud risks. Exemptions also apply to: