US Shares Update on Immigrant Visa Pause for Ghana and 74 Countries, Announces New Exemption
- The US has offered new guidance after it indefinitely paused immigrant visa processing for 75 countries, including Ghana
- The US State Department, in a statement, shared details on how citizens of these affected countries can still secure immigration visas
- Social media users who reacted to the announcement have shared opinions on the decision taken by the US
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The US Department of State has released an update on the indefinite pause on immigrant visa processing for citizens of Ghana and 74 other countries.
A statement shared by the American government on January 14 indicated that the immigration pause for these 75 countries comes with an exemption under certain conditions.
Source: TikTok
Delving into details, the statement explained that Ghanaians and other nationals on the list who hold dual citizenship from countries not listed can use their passports from those countries to apply for immigration visas.
"Dual nationals applying with a valid passport of a country that is not listed above are exempt from this pause," the statement read.
It also offered further clarity on a related issue, stating that the US is not revoking valid immigrant visas issued prior to the new directive.
In a tweet on X, the US Department of State announced that the pause was to ensure that new immigrants do not rely heavily on government benefits.
"The State Department will pause immigrant visa processing from 75 countries whose migrants take welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates. The freeze will remain active until the US can ensure that new immigrants will not extract wealth from the American people."
Other African countries impacted by the new immigration pause include Cameroon, Cape Verde, Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, The Gambia and Ghana.
The rest are Guinea, Liberia, Libya, Morocco, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, and Uganda.
Source: Getty Images
At the time of writing this report, the US Department’s announcement of the immigration freeze had triggered widespread reactions.
Monitor credible US immigration sources
Akua Poku, a US immigration lawyer, in a comment to YEN.com.gh, offered her expert opinions on recent US immigration policies.
She admonished persons planning to relocate to the US to be thorough, especially during the visa application process.
“When a new law or policy is introduced, it often takes practical application to understand how it will be interpreted and enforced. Keep an eye on official U.S. embassy websites and credible U.S. immigration sources for updates on how this policy will be applied during actual case processing.”
Netizens react to US immigration visa freeze
Social media users who took to the comments section of the post have shared varied opinions on the matter.
@ckuck stated:
"Legal immigrants cannot obtain any welfare of any kind until they become US citizens or for 5 years after entry, whichever comes first. Further, legal immigrants have a contract with the sponsor and the US government that allows the US government to recover from the sponsor any obligations."
@OopsGuess suggested:
"Why stop at 75 countries? Just ban all 192 and officially rename the place 'West Korea.'"
@casinokrisa opined:
"Visa processing pauses rarely reduce welfare use; economic behaviour depends on broader integration and support systems."
Trump suspends American visa lottery after shooting
Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported that US President Donald Trump suspended the US green card lottery scheme after a shooting at Brown University, in which two people were killed.
The suspect, identified as 48-year-old Claudio Neves Valente, was a Portuguese man who was found dead on December 18.
This comes after the accused entered the country through the diversity lottery immigrant visa program (DV1) in 2017 and was granted an American green card.
Proofreading by Samuel Gitonga, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.
Source: YEN.com.gh
