Twenty-One Countries Added To 2025 Travel Ban: What Employers And Foreign Nationals Need To Know

President Trump issued a Presidential Proclamation on December 16, 2025, expanding the travel restrictions previously announced earlier this year. The administration's announced purpose for the expansion of travel restrictions is "inadequacies in screening, vetting and provision of information" to the United States for purposes of deciding visa applications. This announcement comes in the wake of the administration's promise a few weeks ago that it would increase vetting of visa applicants and review grants of asylum and refugee status after the arrest of an Afghan asylum recipient in the shooting of two National Guard soldiers in the District of Columbia over Thanksgiving weekend.

The new Proclamation applies to individuals who are outside of the United States when it takes effect and do not have a valid visa as of the effective date. The Proclamation will take effect at 12.01 a.m. EST on January 1, 2026. This delay in the effective date allows critical time for impacted individuals to prepare, and anyone impacted by this Proclamation who is presently overseas should make plans to return to the United States immediately. Return travel should be planned for no later than the end of the day on Wednesday, December 31, 2025.

Countries Impacted By "Full" Travel Restrictions

Countries Originally Impacted by "Full" Travel Restrictions

The Proclamation continues the full suspension and entry into the United States by immigrants and nonimmigrants from the original 12 high-risk countries established in the Proclamation issued in June. These countries include:

The Proclamation removes exceptions previously in the June travel ban for individuals with family-based immigrant visas and adoption visas. Individuals with close family ties (spouses, parents, and children) to United States citizens and permanent residents may not be granted green cards to join their family in the United States for as long as the Proclamation is in effect.

Significantly, and as promised by President Trump, the Proclamation no longer contains exceptions for Afghans who qualify for the Special Immigrant Visa. That immigrant visa program was enacted by Congress in 2006 for Afghan allies who assisted the U.S. government, including the U.S. military, in the fight against the Taliban. These Afghan allies face ongoing threats in Afghanistan, but the Proclamation prevents them from receiving visas.

New Countries Impacted by "Full" Travel Restrictions

The Proclamation names 8 additional countries to the original list of 12 countries impacted by a full suspension and entry into the United States. This means immigrants and nonimmigrants from the following 8 countries (as well as individuals holding Palestinian Authority-issued or endorsed travel documents) will face a full suspension and entry into the United States starting on January 1, 2026.

Laos and Sierra Leone were previously subject to a "partial" restriction, but now face full suspension on entry into the United States. Additionally, individuals holding Palestinian Authority-issued or endorsed travel documents are now subject to full restrictions on entry.

As such, a total of 20 countries will face "full" restrictions as of January 1, 2026.

Countries Affected by "Partial" Travel Restrictions

Countries Originally Impacted by "Partial" Travel Restrictions

The Proclamation also announced that it is continuing "partial" restrictions for 5 of the 7 countries originally facing partial restrictions. Note that the list no longer contains Laos and Sierra Leone, which now face full restrictions, and Turkmenistan nationals face lesser restrictions than in the prior June Proclamation (further information below).

For countries facing a "partial" suspension, entry into the United States is suspended for immigrants (green card applicants) and nonimmigrants (temporary visa applicants) in the visitor/tourist category (B-1, B-2, B-1/B-2), student categories (F and M), and exchange visitor category (J). Consular officers are also instructed to reduce the validity of other nonimmigrant visas to the extent permitted by law:

*The Proclamation slightly lifts the "partial" restrictions previously imposed on Turkmenistan as "Turkmenistan has engaged productively with the United States and demonstrated significant progress since the previous Proclamation." As a result, the Proclamation announces that nonimmigrant Turkmenistan nationals on B-1, B-2, B-1/B-2, F, M, and J visas no longer face any travel restrictions. However, entry to the U.S. of Turkmenistan nationals as immigrants remains suspended.

New Countries Impacted by "Partial" Travel Restrictions

The Proclamation names 15 additional countries to the original list of 7 countries impacted by "partial" restrictions. For countries facing a "partial" suspension, entry into the United States of immigrants and nonimmigrants in the B-1, B-2, B-1/B-2, F, M, and J classifications is suspended. Consular officers are also instructed to reduce the validity of other nonimmigrant visas to the extent permitted by law:

Countries on both the "full" and "partial" suspension lists will be periodically reviewed every 180 days under the terms of the Proclamation to determine if any of the suspensions or limitations imposed should be continued, terminated, modified, or supplemented. As a result, employers sponsoring individuals from these countries and visa applicants from these countries should closely monitor changes in federal immigration policy that may allow for future changes to their US visa and entry eligibility.

Exceptions to the Travel Ban

As with the June travel ban, the Proclamation neither applies to individuals already in the U.S. nor universally to individuals outside the U.S. from the named countries. The exceptions implemented by the Proclamation closely track those provided for during the first Trump Administration, and significant exceptions include:

1. Lawful permanent residents of the United States (existing green card holders)
2. Existing nonimmigrant (temporary) visa holders
3. Dual nationals of a designated country traveling on a passport of a non-designated country (for example, a dual national of the UK and Chad may be able to travel using their UK passport)
4. Diplomats holding A/G/NATO visas
5. Athletes or members of an athletic team (including coaches and immediate relatives), traveling for the World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting events designated by the Secretary of State
6. Special Immigrant Visa Holders (no longer including Afghan SIV holders)
7. Ethnic and religious minorities in Iran
8. Individuals granted asylum
9. Individuals whose entry is determined to be in the national interest involving the Department of Justice, as determined by the Attorney General
10. Individuals whose entry serves the U.S. national interest as determined by the Secretary of State
11. Individuals whose entry is determined to be in the national interest involving the Secretary of Homeland Security

Importantly, and as mentioned previously, the Proclamation no longer contains exceptions for Afghans who qualify for the Special Immigrant Visa program. Additionally, the Proclamation removes exceptions previously in the June travel ban for individuals with family-based immigrant visas and adoption visas.

The Proclamation calls on the Secretary of State to determine whether individual visa applicants may be granted National Interest Exceptions (NIEs) to the entry suspension. As of yet, however, no Department of State implementation policy for NIEs has been made public.

The material contained in this alert does not constitute direct legal advice and is for informational purposes only. An attorney-client relationship is not presumed or intended by receipt or review of this presentation. The information provided should never replace informed counsel when specific immigration-related guidance is needed.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.