If a foreign national travels to the country on a tourist visa, they will be subject to bonds of up to $15, 000, according to the US Department of State.
On Tuesday, the State Department announced that both Zambia and Malawi, both from Africa, would be subject to visa bonds.
The idea is to impose bonds on nations whose citizens have high rates of overstaying their US visas, as it was announced earlier this week.
Tourists from those nations would have to pay a fee to enter the US that ranged from $5, 000 to $15, 000. Then, if the tourist leaves on or before their visa expires, the money will be refunded.
If the tourist’s visa was revoked, the travel was not made possible, or the USCIS denied them entry, the money would also be returned.
The federal government would retain the funds if a tourist overstays their visa or applies for asylum or another immigration-related program while living in the US.
In addition to Malawi and Zambia, more nations are anticipated to be added to the list. Beginning on August 20, the bond requirement for those two nations is anticipated to become effective.
State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce stated on Tuesday that “this targeted, common-sense measure strengthens the administration’s commitment to US immigration law while preventing visa overstays.”
Since regaining office in January for a second term, US President Donald Trump has taken a tough stance on immigration.
Trump signed an executive order denying the “unprecedented flood of illegal immigration” into the US on his first day back in office.
It vowed to rigorously impose US immigration regulations. The new visa bonds were ultimately based on that executive order.
The pilot program, which is scheduled to last 12 months, includes the bonds.
A Federal Register filing states that “this]temporary final rule] responds to the Trump Administration’s call to faithfully uphold the immigration laws of the United States.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) releases a report on visa overstays in the US every year.
There were 565 and 155 visa overstays for the fiscal year 2023, according to the most recent report, which was released in 2024. Only 1.45% of the total non-immigrant admissions to the US made up that percentage.
In other words, 98.55 percent of the in-scope visitors left the country on time and within their accepted conditions, according to the report.
According to the report’s breakdown of country-by-country overstay rates, both Malawi and Zambia had relative high visa overstay rates of 14.3 and 11.1 percent, respectively.
However, both Zambia and Malawi have fewer arrivals in the US because they are both smaller and have fewer business or tourism-related visitors.
Only 1, 655 people from Malawi came for business or pleasure in the fiscal year 2023, according to the report. 237 of those overstayed their visas total.
In the same time frame, 3, 493 people from Zambia came to the country for business or tourism. 388 of those total exceeded visa requirements.
The sheer numbers from the richest, most populous nations with the largest consumer base outweigh those figures. For instance, 40, 884 overstays came from Colombia, and an estimated 20 811 Brazilians stayed in the US longer than their tourist or business visas permitted.
Residents of less developed nations are now more expensively unable to travel to the US, thanks to the newly imposed bonds, according to critics.
The new bond scheme was criticized as discriminatory by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), an advocacy group. In a statement released on Tuesday, it described the system as a “legalized shakedown” of exploitation.
Robert McCaw, CAIR’s director of government affairs, said, “This is not about national security.” It’s “about using immigration policy to extort vulnerable visitors, punish disfavored nations, and turn America’s welcome mat into a paywall,” the statement read.
Source: Aljazeera
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