US suspends immigrant visas for Brazil, Uruguay, Colombia and 72 other countries

The United States has suspended all immigration visa processing for 75 countries, including Brazil, Uruguay, Colombia, Cuba, Guatemala and Nicaragua, among many others. The Donald Trump administration announced on X they will be pausing visa processing for countries whose migrants “take welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates.” The suspension will take effect on January 21, with no scheduled finish date. Processing will resume after the U.S. government “can ensure that new immigrants will not extract wealth from the American people,” they wrote in their post. “We are working to ensure the generosity of the American people will no longer be abused.” The decision only applies to those who are looking to move permanently to the United States with an immigrant visa, and does not affect those seeking to enter the country temporarily for tourism, business, study or medical purposes. This means it does not apply to those who want to get a visa to attend the 2026 FIFA World Cup, set to be carried out in the U.S., Mexico and Canada. People who want to attend the tournament still need to get a tourist visa, and those who already have tickets for games in the U.S. are eligible for a prioritized visa appointment. The announcement is part of a string of immigration and travel visa restrictions imposed by the Trump administration, including the pausing of diversity visas, which allowed a maximum of 55,000 immigrants from countries with low U.S. immigration rates to enter the country each year. The U.S. has also warned travelers who want to enter that country that they will carry out a rigorous analysis of applicants’ social media history from the past five years as part of their vetting process. The Latin American countries included in the suspension are mostly nations with left-leaning and progressive governments, many of which Trump has had public spats or tension with, like Colombia’s Gustavo Petro, Brazil’s Lula da Silva and Cuba’s Miguel Díaz-Canel.  Left-wing Uruguayan leader Yamanú Orsi, who has not had any altercations with Trump, was scheduled to meet with the U.S. ambassador in the country, Lou Rinaldi, on Thursday, following the announcement. Who’s affected The list of affected countries includes several from Latin America and the Caribbean, the Balkans, South Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. The full list of countries in the Americas is as follows: – Antigua and Barbuda– Bahamas– Barbados– Belize– Brazil– Colombia– Cuba– Dominica– Grenada– Guatemala– Haiti– Jamaica– Nicaragua– St. Kitts and Nevis– St. Lucia– St. Vincent and the Grenadines– Uruguay