DHS imposes visa sanctions on four countries for failure to accept return of nationals

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Original Date Announced
September 13, 2017
DHS and DOS order consular officers to restrict visas for applicants from Cambodia, Eritrea, Guinea, and Sierra Leone, in retaliation for "lack of cooperation in accepting nationals ordered removed from the United States." [ID #696]
Press Release: DHS Announces Implementation of Visa Sanctions on Four Countries
Effective Date
September 13, 2017
Subsequent Trump and Court Action
August 28, 2026
2026.08.28 DOS Revision - 9 FAM 304.5

DOS revised the Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) to remove its Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) section 243(d) visa-issuance restriction on Cambodia.
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None

Status: Final/Actual

Trump Administration Action: Agency Directive

Subject Matter: Enforcement Non-Immigrant Visas

Agencies Affected: Bureau of Consular Affairs USCIS ICE CBP

Associated or Derivative Policies

July 14, 2016
Prior to April 22, 2019, when DOS published a final rule on INA 243(d) visa issuance discontinuation, consular officers had been implementing INA 243(d) on sanctioned countries through policy guidance alone. 84 FR 16610 (April 22, 2019) revised 22 CFR 41.121(a) to reference discontinuation of nonimmigrant visas under INA 243(d), and added 22 CFR 41.123 to give consular officers direction on scope and procedural aspects
July 14, 2016 House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform - Recalcitrant Countries: Denying Visas to Countries that Refuse to Take Back Their Deported Nationals

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