President Donald Trump is considering imposing travel restrictions on countries whose citizens overstay short-term visitor visa, according to The Wall Street Journal (WSJ).
The American president and some of his aides are reportedly considering the move as a means of curbing immigration.
The journal listed Nigeria, Chad, Eritrea, Liberia and Sierra Leone as some of the countries whose immigrants overstay their visas at relatively high rates.
The Trump administration wants “to reduce overstay rates for visas and the visa waiver program — and it’s well known that the administration is working to ensure faithful implementation of immigration welfare rules to protect American taxpayers,” WSJ quoted Hogan Gidley, White House spokesman, as saying.
The report added that the US, as part of the new rule, “would tell the countries’ governments that if rates don’t reverse, then future visas could be shorter or harder to get, according to an administration official who described the move as putting those countries “on notice.”
“Ultimately, nationals from countries with high overstay rates could be barred entirely, though the official said no ban is now under consideration,” the report read.
The White House is also said to be considering a number of other rule changes that will make it more difficult to obtain student and investor visas, as well as visas for spouses of highly skilled H-1B-visa holders.
On Monday, the United States embassy in Nigeria said its visa officers do not enjoy denying Nigerians visa.
It explained that some questions often misunderstood by applicants which earn them a rejection, while announcing a Facebook Live session to talk about some of the commonly misunderstood questions on Wednesday.