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The Trump administration has given 36 countries—most of them in Africa—a deadline of Wednesday to commit to strengthening travel vetting procedures or face the possibility of a travel ban on their citizens entering the United States.

A diplomatic cable sent by the State Department over the weekend directed embassies and consulates in those countries to assess their host nations’ willingness to improve travel documentation and cooperate in resolving the status of nationals currently living in the U.S. illegally.

President Donald Trump speaks with reporters while flying aboard Air Force One en route from Calgary, Canada to Joint Base Andrews, Md., late Monday, June 16, 2025. President Donald Trump speaks with reporters while flying aboard Air Force One en route from Calgary, Canada to Joint Base Andrews, Md., late Monday, June 16, 2025. Associated Press

Why It Matters

Earlier this month, President Donald Trump issued a proclamation restricting travel by foreigners from 12 countries and partially restricting entry from an additional seven countries. The ban, which Trump said is to “protect the nation from foreign terrorist and other national security and public safety threats,” went into effect on June 9.

Since his inauguration on January 20, Trump has cracked down on foreign nationals in the United States, mainly through executive orders, and has prioritized immigration enforcement as a key pillar of his agenda.

The 12 nations subject to the current travel ban include Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen. Additional visa restrictions apply to citizens of Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.

What To Know

The cable, described to The Associated Press, instructs the countries to take corrective action within 60 days or risk being added to the existing travel ban list, which already includes 12 countries. Of the 36 newly targeted nations, 25 are located in Africa. This marks the latest effort by the Trump administration to address visa overstays and to link U.S. entry policies with national security concerns. President Trump has argued that certain countries have “deficient” vetting systems or have historically refused to accept deported citizens.

Some nations have denounced the travel restrictions and threatened reciprocal measures, while refugee and resettlement groups argue the policy promotes division.

During a press conference on Tuesday, State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce declined to comment on the details of the cable, which was first reported by The Washington Post, but confirmed the administration’s objectives. She stated that the U.S. is asking countries to “improve their own vetting processes for passport holders, accept their nationals deported from the U.S. and take other steps to ensure their citizens are not a threat to the U.S.”

The list includes key U.S. partners like Egypt and Djibouti, both with military ties to Washington, as well as historically friendly nations such as Liberia, Nigeria, and Ethiopia. Notably, Syria and the Democratic Republic of Congo—excluded from the initial travel ban—are now included.

South Sudan, which already faces a separate State Department travel ban, has seen most of its citizens’ U.S. visas revoked under prior restrictions. Earlier this month, President Trump enacted a travel ban on 12 countries and imposed additional visa restrictions on seven others. That order barred the issuance of new visas but did not revoke those already granted.

The 36 countries identified in the new State Department cable are:

Angola

Antigua and Barbuda

Benin

Bhutan

Burkina Faso

Cabo Verde

Cambodia

Cameroon

Cote D’Ivoire

Democratic Republic of Congo

Djibouti

Dominica

Ethiopia

Egypt

Gabon

The Gambia

Ghana

Kyrgyzstan

Liberia

Malawi

Mauritania

Niger

Nigeria

Saint Kitts and Nevis

Saint Lucia

Sao Tome and Principe

Senegal

South Sudan

Syria

Tanzania

Tonga

Tuvalu

Uganda

Vanuatu

Zambia

Zimbabwe

What People Are Saying

Bruce said Tuesday: “We’re looking at providing a period of time, (where if countries) don’t get to that point where we can trust them and they’ve got to change the system, update it, do whatever they need to do to convince us that we can trust the process and the information they have.”

A spokesperson for the State Department told Newsweek in an email Sunday: “The Department of State is committed to protecting our nation and its citizens by upholding the highest standards of national security and public safety through our visa process.”

Amnesty International’s Secretary General Agnès Callamard said in a press release on June 5: “President Trump’s new travel ban is discriminatory, racist, and downright cruel. By targeting people based on their race, religion, or nationality, from countries with predominantly Black, Brown and Muslim-majority populations, this blanket ban constitutes racial discrimination under international human rights law. It also spreads hate and disinformation, reinforcing the misleading idea that certain populations are more likely to pose security risks or engage in acts of violence.”

Senator Adam Schiff, a California Democrat, wrote in a June 4 X, formerly Twitter, post: “This is Trump’s reckless first term travel ban all over again. Just like before, Trump’s expanded ban on travelers from around the world will not improve our national security and will only further isolate the U.S. from the rest of world. Bigotry is not a national security strategy.”

What Happens Next

It remains unclear whether countries that commit to reforms but fall short of meeting U.S. benchmarks within the 60-day window will still be subject to the ban.

This article includes reporting by The Associated Press.

Update: 6/17/25, 6:52 p.m. ET: This article was updated with new information and remarks.