US adds seven countries to list of nations where citizens must pay ‘visa bonds’

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The Trump administration has added seven international locations to the listing of countries whose passport holders are required to publish bonds of as much as $15,000 to use to enter the USA.

13 international locations, all however two of them in Africa, are actually on the listing, which makes the method of acquiring a U.S. visa unaffordable for a lot of.

The State Division final week quietly added Bhutan, Botswana, the Central African Republic, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Namibia and Turkmenistan to the listing.

These designations took impact on Jan. 1, in line with a discover posted on the journey.state.gov web site.

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It is the newest effort by the Trump administration to tighten necessities for entry to the U.S., together with requiring residents from all international locations that require visas to sit down for in-person interviews.

They need to additionally disclose years of social media histories in addition to detailed accounts of their and their households’ earlier journey and dwelling preparations.

U.S. officers have defended the bonds, which may vary from $5,000 as much as $15,000, sustaining they’re efficient in guaranteeing that residents of focused international locations don’t overstay their visas.

Cost of the bond doesn’t assure a visa can be granted, however the quantity can be refunded if the visa is denied or when a visa holder demonstrates they’ve complied with the phrases of visa.

The brand new international locations lined by the requirement be part of Mauritania, Sao Tome and Principe, Tanzania, Gambia, Malawi and Zambia, which have been all positioned on the listing in August and October of final yr.

“Any citizen or nationwide touring on a passport issued by one in every of these international locations, who’s discovered in any other case eligible for a B1/B2 visa, should publish a bond for $5,000, $10,000, or $15,000,” the State Division wrote on its web site.

“The quantity is decided on the time of the visa interview. The applicant should additionally submit a Division of Homeland Safety Kind I-352. Candidates should conform to the phrases of the bond by the Division of the Treasury’s on-line fee platform Pay.gov. This requirement applies no matter place of software.”

The State Division mentioned visa holders will even be required to enter and exit the USA by designated ports of entry in any other case they could face a denied entry or a departure that’s not correctly recorded.

The ports of entry embrace Boston Logan Worldwide Airport (BOS), John F. Kennedy Worldwide Airport (JFK) and Washington Dulles Worldwide Airport (IAD).