Nigeria added to partial U.S. travel restriction list as Trump expands ban

Nigeria has been added to a new list of countries facing partial U.S. travel restrictions as the Trump administration expanded its travel ban to cover more nations.

The latest move adds five countries – Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, South Sudan and Syria – to the list of nations whose citizens are fully banned from entering the United States. An additional 15 countries, including Nigeria, will now face partial travel restrictions, though not a total ban, the White House said Tuesday.

Others on the partial-restriction list are Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Dominica, Gabon, Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Senegal, Tanzania, Tonga, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The White House said the decision was driven by concerns over “widespread corruption, unreliable civil documents, visa overstays, and weak government control” in affected countries, which it said make proper vetting difficult. The administration also cited national security and counterterrorism concerns.

“The restrictions and limitations imposed by the Proclamation are necessary to prevent the entry of foreign nationals about whom the United States lacks sufficient information to assess the risks they pose, garner cooperation from foreign governments, enforce our immigration laws, and advance other important foreign policy, national security, and counterterrorism objectives,” reads the White House proclamation announcing the changes.

The expansion follows the arrest of an Afghan national accused of shooting two U.S. National Guard troops near the White House over the Thanksgiving weekend. The suspect has pleaded not guilty.

Nigeria Previously Spared

In March 2025, Nigeria was excluded when the Trump administration proposed travel restrictions on citizens from 43 countries, raising cautious optimism among Nigerian travellers and businesses.

That proposal divided countries into categories ranging from full visa suspensions to conditional restrictions unless governments addressed security and information-sharing gaps. Nigeria was not listed at the time, although U.S. officials warned the draft was subject to change.

Nigeria, however, has faced similar measures before. In 2020, during Trump’s first term, the U.S. imposed immigration restrictions on Nigeria, citing failures in identity management and information sharing. Those measures largely affected immigrant visas.

Resurrecting a First-Term Policy

The current expansion revives one of Trump’s most controversial first-term policies. In June, the administration announced a ban on citizens of 12 countries, including Afghanistan, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, while placing heightened restrictions on seven others.

According to the White House proclamation, the new measures are intended to “prevent the entry of foreign nationals about whom the United States lacks sufficient information to assess the risks they pose.”