US trails USD15,000 visa bond program

(MENAFN) The U.S. government is set to launch a pilot program requiring certain foreign nationals to pay a visa bond of up to $15,000 to enter the country for tourism or business, according to a notice published in the Federal Register on Tuesday.

The initiative is part of President Donald Trump’s broader crackdown on illegal immigration, which has included expanded border security, increased detention funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and cuts to humanitarian programs. In June, Trump also restricted entry for citizens from 19 countries and introduced a mandatory “integrity fee” for nonimmigrant visa applicants.

Starting August 20, U.S. consular officers will be allowed to impose visa bonds ranging from $5,000 to $15,000 on travelers from countries with high visa overstay rates, limited vetting systems, or citizenship-by-investment programs lacking residency requirements. The year-long trial applies to B-1 (business) and B-2 (tourism) visa applicants, and bond amounts will be based on individual factors such as purpose of visit, employment status, income, skills, and education level.

The full list of affected countries is expected to be released later Tuesday. The State Department anticipates around 2,000 applicants will be required to post bonds during the trial.

Many of the countries previously included in Trump’s travel ban also have high overstay rates, including Chad, Eritrea, Haiti, Myanmar, and Yemen. A recent report from U.S. Customs and Border Protection noted over 500,000 suspected visa overstays in 2023, with Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, Haiti, Venezuela, and the Dominican Republic among the top offenders.

Experts warn that such immigration policies may harm the U.S. economy. Moody’s chief economist Mark Zandi said the country is nearing a recession, partly due to reduced immigration, which limits labor force growth. The Economic Policy Institute also projected that Trump’s mass deportation agenda could cost nearly 6 million jobs and disrupt the broader labor market, affecting both immigrant and native-born workers.

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