USA: 50 countries, including 30 African ones, will have to pay a $20,000 deposit for a visa.
Nationals of 50 countries will now have to pay a bond of up to $20,000 to obtain a tourist or business visa to the United States. The scheme, tested for a year, becomes permanent and sees its maximum amount increase by $5,000.
SUMMARY
The measure particularly affects 30 African countries, including Maghreb countries, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Ethiopia. Washington claims that this program is a “real success” after a year of testing.
According to U.S. authorities, more than 20,000 visa applicants have been impacted by this reform. Nearly half of them have opted not to pay the bond, while the number of visas issued to nationals of the targeted countries has decreased by nearly 83%.
The required amount was previously a minimum of $5,000 and a maximum of $15,000. It now ranges between $10,000 and $20,000, an amount that must be recovered by the traveler upon leaving U.S. territory.
A Measure Against Overstays
The United States presents this bond as a means to combat individuals who remain in the country after their visa expires. According to data provided by the U.S. administration, more than half of visitors from the affected countries would have exceeded the authorized length of stay in 2024.
The program has been gradually expanded over the year to include 50 countries. Thirty of them are in Africa, while another ten have been under a total ban on issuing new visas for over a year.
Burkina Faso, Mali, and Somalia are among the countries subject to this ban. Therefore, the new bond system does not apply to nationals of these states, to whom U.S. authorities are already denying access to new visas.
Washington initially launched this policy on a temporary basis to reduce overstays and hold travelers accountable. The decrease in visa applications and issuances is now being cited by authorities to justify its continued implementation.
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