The United States government has temporarily halted the processing of green card and citizenship applications filed by Nigerians and nationals of several other countries newly affected by President Donald Trump’s expanded travel ban, a report by CBS News has revealed.
The latest move, which deepens Washington’s sweeping clampdown on legal immigration, affects thousands of would-be immigrants from Africa and Asia, many of whom are already living legally in the United States and seeking to adjust their status or become American citizens.
According to the report, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has extended an earlier directive freezing all immigration petitions — including applications for permanent residency and naturalisation from nationals of countries listed under Trump’s travel ban proclamation.
The suspension follows a directive issued earlier in December ordering USCIS to stop processing immigration requests from nationals of 19 countries initially covered by the ban announced in June.
That policy, popularly referred to as the “travel ban,” was further expanded this week to include 20 additional countries.
A US official, who spoke to CBS News on condition of anonymity because the changes have not been formally announced, said USCIS has now broadened the freeze to cover nationals of the newly added countries.
Under the latest proclamation, full entry bans have been imposed on Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, South Sudan and Syria. Partial restrictions now apply to Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Dominica, Gabon, Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Tonga, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The new measures add to an existing list of affected countries, including Afghanistan, Burundi, Chad, Cuba, the Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Myanmar, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen and Venezuela, among others.
Laos and Sierra Leone, previously under partial restrictions, have now been placed under a full entry ban.
In a social media post late Thursday, USCIS Director Joseph Edlow appeared to confirm the expansion of the policy.
“USCIS is conducting a comprehensive review of anyone from anywhere who poses a threat to the US, including those identified in the President’s latest proclamation to restore law and order in our nation’s immigration system,” Edlow wrote.
The Trump administration said the latest immigration restrictions were introduced in response to national security concerns, following a Thanksgiving week shooting in Washington, D.C., in which two National Guard soldiers were killed. The attack was allegedly carried out by an Afghan national.
Officials also disclosed that all asylum decisions handled by USCIS, as well as immigration and visa processing for Afghan nationals, have been suspended.
Analysts note that the expanded travel ban now affects nationals of more than 60 per cent of African countries and about one-fifth of countries worldwide.
However, the decision has sparked outrage and intense debate among Nigerians at home and in the diaspora, with critics dismissing the security justification as exaggerated and unfair.
Many have warned of potential diplomatic fallout and economic consequences, particularly for families, students and professionals with pending immigration cases.
Former senator, Shehu Sani, condemned the move, describing it as discriminatory. He said the policy was “a clear signal that migrants from developing countries are no longer welcome in the United States.”
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