Immigration attorney Steven Brown said it is unlikely that India could ever face a visa freeze in the US as India is low on using government resources in the US. But that does not mean it can’t change ever, the attorney said explaining the Trump administration’s sudden visa freeze on 75 countries, including many of those which were already facing travel ban. Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and Pakistan are on the list of the 75 countries. Afghanistan has been facing travel ban as well but the rest are new inclusions. That makes India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives from South Asia excluded from the list.
The president has a broad discretion over 212(f) to deny entry to any group of nationals, Brown said, adding that the first Trump administration saw a Muslim ban. There can be no certainty on what’s next but this freeze is predicated on countries that use government resources, the attorney said. The US State Department said the visa pause for 75 countries will remain active until the US can ensure that new immigrants will not extract wealth from the American people. The decision comes in the wake of a major welfare scam allegedly being uncovered in Minnesota by the Somali immigrants.
Travel ban on 39 countries versus visa freeze on 76 countries
In December 2025, the administration published a list of 39 countries from which nationals are either fully or partially banned from traveling to the US. Most of those countries are also featured on the new list of 76 countries. But the immigrant visa ban is not meant for tourists, students, or people coming to the US for employment. The immigrant visa freeze means people seeking permanent residency or Green Cards in the US will be affected. 39 travel ban countriesAfghanistan, Burkina Faso, Myanmar (Burma), Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Mali, Niger, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Yemen, and Palestinian Authority travel document holders under the full travel ban. Partial ban: Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burundi, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Dominica, Gabon, The Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.76 visa freeze countriesAfghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Myanmar, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, The Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, North Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Nepal, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Republic of the Congo, Russia, Rwanda, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Yemen. Go to Source
