United States President Donald Trump has signed a new order that bars citizens from 12 countries, including Chad and Congo, from entering the US. The restriction will begin on June 9, 2025.
The full ban affects people from Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.
In addition, the order places partial restrictions on people from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.
President Trump said the decision was made to protect the country from people who may pose a threat to national security.
“We cannot have open migration from any country where we cannot safely and reliably vet and screen,” Trump said in a video message shared on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday.
According to the White House, the countries with the full ban were found to have problems such as a strong presence of terrorist groups, poor cooperation with US visa procedures, and weak systems for checking the identities of travelers.
The White House also said that poor record-keeping of criminal histories and high rates of people overstaying their visas added to the reasons for the travel restrictions.
However, some exceptions will apply. Athletes going to the US for major sporting events, some Afghan citizens, and dual nationals who also have citizenship in countries not affected by the ban may still be allowed in.
This latest travel restriction is part of Trump’s continued crackdown on immigration since the beginning of his second term.
On January 20, Trump signed an earlier executive order that demanded tougher checks on foreigners and directed US agencies to review which countries fail to properly vet their citizens before sending them abroad.
This new directive is similar to Trump’s travel ban from his first term, which targeted seven Muslim-majority countries and was later supported by the US Supreme Court in 2018.
President Joe Biden reversed that earlier ban in 2021, calling it “a stain on our national conscience.”
