President Trump on Wednesday sharply limited the ability of certain foreign nationals to travel to the U.S., citing national security considerations.
In a proclamation published Wednesday, President Trump outlined rationale for fully or partially restricting travel from 19 countries, including Haiti, Iran, Cuba and Venezuela.
"We cannot have open migration from any country where we cannot safely and reliably vet and screen... That is why today I am signing a new executive order placing travel restrictions on countries including Yemen, Somalia, Haiti, Libya, and numerous others." –President Trump pic.twitter.com/ER7nGM4TO2
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 4, 2025
The new policy comes after President Trump signed an executive order the day he took office that directed agencies of the executive branch to identify "countries throughout the world for which vetting and screening information is so deficient as to warrant a full or partial suspension on the entry or admission of nationals from those countries."
"I have determined to fully restrict and limit the entry of nationals of the following 12 countries: Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen," President Trump writes in the new proclamation. "These restrictions distinguish between, but apply to both, the entry of immigrants and nonimmigrants."
Further, the president writes, "I have determined to partially restrict and limit the entry of nationals of the following 7 countries: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela. These restrictions distinguish between, but apply to both, the entry of immigrants and nonimmigrants."
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The new restrictions will apply to foreign nationals who are outside the U.S. and who do not have a valid visa at the time of the order taking effect. The new rule also includes certain exceptions for lawful permanent U.S. residents, dual nationals, athletes, adoptions, those holding special immigrant visas and others.
"President Trump is fulfilling his promise to protect Americans from dangerous foreign actors that want to come to our country and cause us harm," White House Deputy Press Secretary Abigail Jackson said on Wednesday. "These commonsense restrictions are country-specific and include places that lack proper vetting, exhibit high visa overstay rates, or fail to share identity and threat information."
The rule directs the Secretary of State to assess whether it should be changed, starting 90 days after it goes into effect and to be revisited every 120 days thereafter.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
