The United States government has temporarily suspended the processing of legal immigration applications submitted by Nigerians and citizens of several other countries newly added to President Donald Trump’s expanded travel ban, according to reports by CBS News.
The move affects a wide range of lawful immigration requests, including applications for permanent residency and US citizenship. Many of those impacted are immigrants who are already living in the United States and were in the process of adjusting their legal status before the sudden pause.
The suspension is part of a wider tightening of immigration controls that has gathered pace in recent weeks under the Trump administration. Earlier this month, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) was instructed to halt all immigration petitions filed by nationals of 19 countries that were previously placed under full or partial restrictions in a travel ban announced in June.
That earlier directive followed a Thanksgiving week shooting in Washington, D.C., in which two National Guard soldiers were killed. Authorities said the suspect was an Afghan national, prompting the administration to introduce sweeping immigration-related measures. Alongside freezing immigration petitions, the government also paused asylum decisions handled by USCIS and stopped processing visa and immigration applications for Afghan nationals.
On Tuesday, the administration widened the scope of the travel ban, adding 20 more countries to the list. Five of those nations now face a complete ban on travel and immigration to the US, while citizens of 15 others are subject to partial restrictions.
A US official, speaking to CBS News on condition of anonymity, confirmed that USCIS has now extended its suspension of immigration case processing to include nationals of the newly added countries.
Under the latest expansion, full travel bans apply to citizens of Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, South Sudan and Syria. Partial restrictions now affect nationals of Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Dominica, Gabon, Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Tonga, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
These additions come on top of earlier restrictions affecting Afghanistan, Burundi, Chad, Cuba, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Laos, Myanmar, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Yemen and Venezuela. In the most recent proclamation, Laos and Sierra Leone were upgraded from partial restrictions to full bans.
USCIS Director Joseph Edlow hinted at the expanded measures in a social media post late Thursday, stating that the agency was carrying out a broad review of individuals considered potential security risks.
“USCIS is conducting a comprehensive review of anyone from anywhere who poses a threat to the US, including those named in the President’s latest proclamation aimed at restoring law and order in our immigration system,” Edlow wrote.
Combined, the latest restrictions now affect citizens from more than 60 percent of African countries and roughly one-fifth of nations worldwide, making it one of the most far-reaching travel bans in US history.
President Trump has defended the policy, arguing that it is necessary to protect national security and address challenges related to screening and vetting applicants from the affected countries.
The decision, however, has triggered strong reactions in Nigeria, with many critics condemning the move as excessive and discriminatory. Some have questioned the security and religious freedom concerns cited by US authorities, warning that the ban could strain diplomatic relations and hurt economic ties.
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Former Nigerian senator Shehu Sani described the policy as a stark message to the developing world, saying it signals that migrants from poorer nations are increasingly unwelcome in the United States.
