The administration of US President Donald Trump has lifted restrictions on the issuance of non-immigrant visas for citizens of Turkmenistan, while maintaining the suspension of immigrant visas. This was reported by DW, citing a document published by the White House on December 16.
Washington explained that the decision was made due to Ashgabat’s “productive engagement” with the US administration and the progress achieved in improving identification procedures and information-sharing on security issues.
At the same time, the United States expanded the list of countries whose citizens are banned from entering US territory. The new measures will take effect on January 1, 2026, and will apply to 20 countries and territories, effectively doubling the previous list.
A full entry ban will now apply to citizens of Burkina Faso, Laos, Mali, Niger, Syria, Sierra Leone, and South Sudan, as well as to holders of travel documents issued by the Palestinian National Authority.
Partial entry restrictions will affect citizens of Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Gabon, Gambia, the Dominican Republic, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Côte d’Ivoire, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, and Tonga.
The White House emphasized that the new restrictions target countries with persistent and serious deficiencies in security screening, migration control, and information-sharing with US authorities.
CentralasianLIGHT.org
December 17, 2025