A few hours after Fox News reported that the United States government is suspending the granting of visas to citizens of Brazil and 74 other countries, the American State Department stated that such a measure was taken because immigrants from these nations receive social benefits “at unacceptable levels”.
“The Department of State will suspend the processing of immigrant visas from 75 countries whose migrants receive social benefits from the American people at unacceptable levels. The freeze will remain in effect until the US can guarantee that new immigrants will not extract wealth from the American people”, claimed the department, in a post on X.
According to the American press, the suspension will come into effect on January 21 and will remain in effect indefinitely, until the department carries out a reassessment of visa processing.
The suspension will not apply to applicants seeking non-immigrant visas, such as temporary tourist and business visas.
Although the full list of affected countries has not yet been released, the United States press reported that, in addition to Brazil, citizens of Somalia, Russia, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Nigeria, Thailand and Yemen will also be covered by the measure.
In November, the US State Department sent guidance to US embassies and consulates to deny visas based on applicants’ health conditions (such as obesity and chronic illnesses), as well as factors such as age or the likelihood of the applicant relying on social benefits.
