US expands $15,000 visa bond list

The Trump administration has expanded a US visa rule that requires passport holders from certain countries to post bonds of up to USD 15,000 before entering the United States. Seven more countries have been added to the list, taking the total to 13, most of them in Africa, a move that makes US visas unaffordable for many applicants. The US State Department last week added Bhutan, Botswana, the Central African Republic, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Namibia and Turkmenistan to the list. According to a notice on the travel.state.gov website, the new designations took effect on January 1. The bond requirement is part of a broader push by the Trump administration to tighten US entry rules. In recent months, visa applicants from all countries have also been required to attend in-person interviews, share years of social media activity, and provide detailed information about their own and their families’ travel and living history. US officials say the bonds, which range from USD 5,000 to USD 15,000, help ensure that visitors do not overstay their visas. The administration maintains that the measure improves compliance with visa rules. Paying the bond does not guarantee that a visa will be approved. The amount is refunded if a visa is denied or when a visa holder proves that they have followed the terms of their stay. The newly added countries join Mauritania, Sao Tome and Principe, Tanzania, Gambia, Malawi and Zambia, which were placed under the bond requirement in August and October last year.