US Plans Massive Travel Ban Shake-Up: Over 30 Nations on Draft List

The United States very likely to impose the most comprehensive travel restrictions policy ever through the meddling of authorities who are evaluating more than 30 countries for possible limits to entry.

Kristi Noem, the Secretary of Homeland Security, during her Thursday appearance on The Ingraham Angle, a show of Fox News, stated that a vast number of countries are under the administration’s consideration for new restrictions. When asked if the list could go up to 32, she refrained from providing an exact number but did confirm that it is “over 30” and added that “Trump is still reviewing countries.”

This year has already seen the administration impose several rounds of restrictions. A proclamation in June barred citizens of 12 nations from entering the United States and laid down very limited entry conditions for the citizens of 7 other countries, who are mainly tourists, students and temporary workers along with the immigrants and non-immigrants involved.

Noem indicated that the states that cannot assure who is leaving their territory are likely to fall in the category of ones being considered. The Secretary said that the US government is expecting the cooperation of the foreign governments before allowing their citizens to enter the United States and asked the reasoning behind admitting the travelers from the countries that cannot help with the vetting process.

Discussions within the administration about the policy tightening have been going on for weeks. Reuters had earlier reported a leak from within the State Department showing a list of 36 more countries that might be banned under the review, indicating the vastness of the reconsideration. Any such move would be another indication of the administration’s migration control policy change toward a stricter regime.

The reassessment gained speed with the murder of the two National Guard members in Washington D.C. a week ago as a starting point. The Investigators pointed to an Afghan national as the perpetrator who came to the U.S. in 2021 under a refugee program that officials of the administration say did not have proper screening. After the attack, Trump said that he would put a “permanent pause” on the immigration from what he referred to as “Third World Countries" but did not clarify which ones he was including.

Department of Homeland Security officials have also verified that there is a review of refugee applications granted during the time of President Joe Biden in parallel to that of Green Cards issued to people from 19 countries. Trump, who has been back in the White House since January, is making immigration policy more visible, sending federal agents to the big cities, and not allowing people to seek asylum at the southern border. The deportation actions have been very public, but the possible extension of the travel ban also indicates a strong movement to change the legal entry pathways in this way.