Trump Administration Considers US Entry Restrictions from 43 Countries Including North Korea, Russia, and Iran

43 Countries Divided into Three Tiers
Complete Entry Ban... Immigration and Tourist Visas Prohibited

The Trump administration in the United States is reportedly considering measures to restrict entry into the U.S. for nationals from 43 countries, including North Korea, Iran, Russia, and Venezuela.

On the 14th (local time), according to the American daily The New York Times (NYT), the U.S. Department of State has drafted a preliminary list of 43 countries subject to entry restrictions and is gathering opinions from embassies, other government agencies, and intelligence organizations.

The draft divides the target countries into three tiers.

The first tier is the "red" list. Nationals from these countries are completely banned from entering the United States. Eleven countries, including North Korea, Afghanistan, Bhutan, Cuba, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Venezuela, and Yemen, have been placed on the red list.

Next, the "orange" list includes countries with limited travel restrictions: Belarus, Eritrea, Haiti, Laos, Myanmar, Pakistan, Russia, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, and Turkmenistan, totaling ten countries.

For nationals of these countries, wealthy individuals visiting for business are allowed entry into the U.S., but immigration or tourist visas are not permitted. Additionally, nationals from these countries must undergo mandatory in-person interviews to obtain U.S. visas.

Finally, 22 countries are listed on the "yellow" list. If these countries do not resolve the issues raised by the U.S. within 60 days, they may be moved to the red or orange lists.

The main issues cited include lack of information on their passport holders, security flaws in the passport issuance process, and the potential sale of citizenship to nationals of banned countries.

The State Department plans to finalize the list after the consultation process and report it to the White House by next week.

According to the NYT, it remains unclear whether the list’s enforcement will affect the validity of visas or permanent residency already held by nationals of the affected countries. There are also concerns about including Russia, with which the Trump administration is attempting to improve relations, on the restricted list.