President Donald Trump, on Tuesday, signed a Proclamation further restricting entry to the United States for nationals from countries deemed high-risk due to “demonstrated, persistent, and severe deficiencies in screening, vetting, and information-sharing” that threaten United States national security and public safety.
Nigeria is now listed among the 15 additional countries newly subject to partial restrictions.
The announcement comes directly from the White House website, in a fact sheet titled “President Donald J. Trump Further Restricts and Limits the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the Security of the United States”, issued on Tuesday, December 16, 2025.
Recall that Trump had earlier on October 31 declared Nigeria as a ‘country of particular concern’ over alleged persecution of Christians in the country.
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The White House described the action as “strengthening national security through common sense restrictions based on data.”
The Proclamation continues full restrictions and entry limitations on nationals from the original 12 high-risk countries under Proclamation 10949: Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.
It also adds full restrictions and entry limitations on five additional countries: Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, South Sudan, and Syria, along with individuals holding Palestinian-Authority-issued travel documents. Laos and Sierra Leone, previously subject to partial restrictions, now face full restrictions.
Nationals from Burundi, Cuba, Togo, and Venezuela remain under partial restrictions.
The Proclamation adds partial restrictions and entry limitations on 15 additional countries, including Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Dominica, Gabon, The Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Tonga, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
The fact sheet noted that “exceptions for lawful permanent residents, existing visa holders, certain visa categories like athletes and diplomats, and individuals whose entry serves U.S. national interests” are included.
It also states that family-based immigrant visa carve-outs that carry “demonstrated fraud risks” have been narrowed, while case-by-case waivers remain possible.
In explaining the rationale, the White House fact sheet emphasised that the Proclamation was 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.”
The fact sheet quoted Trump directly: “It is the President’s duty to take action to ensure that those seeking to enter our country will not harm the American people.”
It added that, after consultations with cabinet officials and assessments based on Executive Order 14161, Proclamation 10949, and country-specific information, “President Trump has determined that the entry of nationals from additional countries must be restricted or limited to protect U.S. national security and public safety interests.”
The restrictions are country-specific “in order to encourage cooperation with the subject countries in recognition of each country’s unique circumstances,” the fact sheet said, highlighting challenges such as “widespread corruption, fraudulent or unreliable civil documents and criminal records, and nonexistent birth-registration systems–systemically preventing accurate vetting.”
Some countries, it noted, “refuse to share passport exemplars or law-enforcement data,” while others allow Citizenship-by-Investment schemes that conceal identity and bypass vetting requirements.
The fact sheet also cited “high visa-overstay rates and refusal to repatriate removable nationals” and the presence of “terrorist, criminal, and extremist activity” in several restricted countries.
The White House fact sheet described the move as part of President Trump’s ongoing national security agenda: “President Trump is keeping his promise to restore travel restrictions on dangerous countries and to secure our borders.”
It referenced the Supreme Court’s prior ruling on similar restrictions, noting that the Court found the policy “is squarely within the scope of Presidential authority” and that it is “expressly premised on legitimate purposes”–specifically “preventing entry of nationals who cannot be adequately vetted and inducing other nations to improve their practices.”
Finally, the fact sheet noted that Turkmenistan, which previously faced restrictions, has made progress in cooperation with the US, prompting the new Proclamation to lift the ban on its nonimmigrant visas while maintaining the suspension of entry for Turkmen nationals as immigrants.
