A group of 75 members of the United States Congress has sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, expressing deep concern and strongly condemning the administration’s decision to suspend the issuance of all immigrant visas for 75 countries worldwide.
In their letter, the lawmakers describe the decision as “unilateral, discriminatory, and unacceptable,” emphasizing that it affects nearly 40% of countries globally and hundreds of thousands of individuals each year.
They also criticize the fact that such a drastic change in immigration policy was announced via social media, without transparency and without providing clear explanations regarding the nature or duration of the suspension.
“We write to strongly condemn your unilateral decision to suspend the issuance of all immigrant visas for 75 countries. This is a scandalous and discriminatory policy decision by your administration that affects nearly 40% of the world’s countries. It is also shocking that such a drastic policy change, impacting hundreds of thousands of people each year, was announced not only through a tweet, but also without providing any meaningful information about the suspension itself,” the letter states.
According to the U.S. Department of State, the affected countries include: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, the Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia, Brazil, Burma, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, North Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Nepal, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Republic of the Congo, Russia, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, and Yemen.
The lawmakers note that the suspension applies to all immigrant visa categories, including visas for immediate relatives of U.S. citizens, family-sponsored visas, employment-based visas, religious workers, the Diversity Visa Program (Green Card Lottery), and returning lawful permanent residents.
“According to the Department of State, these 75 countries accounted for approximately 243,671 immigrant visas in fiscal year 2023, 280,015 in fiscal year 2024, and 189,583 from October through May of fiscal year 2025. Experts estimate that an indefinite suspension would deny nearly half of all lawful immigrants over the next year. An analysis of visas issued over the past three years shows that individuals from the affected countries make up 40–45% of all immigrant visas,” the letter reads.
The lawmakers warn that the policy will lead to family separations, prevent family reunification, harm small businesses, weaken religious organizations, and undermine the American Dream for thousands of people.
“This discriminatory policy will have a devastating impact on our constituents. It will separate families and prevent them from reuniting, block individuals from pursuing the American Dream, slow the growth of small businesses, and undermine the ability of religious organizations to build and sustain their communities. In short, this policy is regressive, outdated, and causes far more harm than good,” the lawmakers wrote.
They urge the administration to provide, no later than February 20, 2026, detailed explanations regarding the legal basis of the decision, the data used to justify it, any cost-benefit analysis conducted, and why a blanket ban was imposed instead of individualized assessments of visa applicants.
