A woman stumbles and falls as federal immigration enforcement dragged her after smashing the windows of her car in Minneapolis, Minnesota, US, January 13, 2026. Photo: VCG

The US is indefinitely suspending immigrant visa processing from 75 countries in another expansion of the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration, and the pause will begin on January 21. China is not on the list, according to multiple media reports. The US, a nation built by immigrants, is now witnessing “an unprecedented politicization” of immigration, with migrants broadly stigmatized and blamed for social disorder to manufacture political advantage, a trend that also underscores deep internal frictions within US society, a Chinese expert said on Thursday.

The US State Department wrote on social media that it “will pause immigrant visa processing from 75 countries whose migrants take welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates.” In another two posts, it noted that “We are working to ensure the generosity of the American people will no longer be abused” and “The Trump Administration will always put America First.”

The pause in processing will apply to countries including Brazil, Colombia, Egypt, Haiti, Somalia and Russia. The suspension applies to immigrant visas, such as those for employment or to join family in the US. The pause does not apply to non-immigrant visas like student and tourist visas, and as such would not apply for those seeking to travel to the World Cup in the US this summer, according to a CNN report.

The suspension comes after the State Department last year directed increased scrutiny under the “public charge” provision of immigration law meant to target those who the Trump administration believes will become a strain on public resources, per CNN. 

The decision follows a November directive to US diplomats asking them to ensure that visa applicants are financially self-sufficient and do not risk becoming dependent on government subsidies during their stay in the US, according to a State Department cable seen by Reuters at the time.

According to Reuters, US President Donald Trump has pursued a sweeping immigration crackdown since returning to office in January, 2025. His administration has aggressively prioritized immigration enforcement, sending federal agents to major US cities and sparking violent confrontations with both migrants and US citizens.

While he campaigned on stopping illegal immigration into the US, his administration has also made legal immigration more difficult - for example, by imposing new and expensive fees, opens new tab on the applicants of H-1B visas for highly skilled workers, according to Reuters.

"This administration has proven itself to have the most anti-legal immigration agenda in American history," David Bier, Cato's Director of Immigration Studies and The Selz Foundation Chair in Immigration Policy, said in a statement. "This action will ban nearly half of all legal immigrants to the United States, turning away about 315,000 legal immigrants over the next year alone," Bier said, per Reuters on Thursday.

A number of the countries impacted by the visa processing suspension were already included as part of the administration’s expanded travel ban list. According to a US official, the countries impacted by the suspension in immigrant visa processing are Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia, Brazil, Burma, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Colombia, Cote d’Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Nepal, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Republic of the Congo, Russia, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Uruguay, Uzbekistan and Yemen, per CNN.

Following the US latest move, a Guardian report noted that the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration has “intensified to record levels, even as nationwide protests over the killing of Renee Good have drawn attention to law enforcement practices.” It noted that research contradicts administration claims about immigrant welfare use. In February 2025, the libertarian Cato Institute published a paper showing that native-born Americans consumed, on an average per capita basis, more welfare and entitlement benefits than all immigrants. 

The Guardian report cited migration policy experts as warning that the move will have far-reaching consequences beyond those directly affected by visa denials.

Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother of three, was fatally shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent, Jonathan Ross, in Minneapolis during a protest against the agency’s operations, an incident that has sparked outrage in the city and nationwide. According to Time Magazine, the case shares striking similarities with a series of confrontations involving ICE agents deployed across the country as part of Trump administration’s aggressive deportation agenda in his second term, raising concerns about the tactics used in these operations.

Many netizens also left comments under posts by the US Department of State on the suspension of immigrant visa processing from 75 countries. One online outlet, “Wide Angle” commented that “framing immigration as ‘wealth extraction’ is economic scapegoating. It turns structural failures in wages, housing, and welfare policy into suspicion of entire populations, while ignoring who actually captures wealth at scale.”

Another netizen, “OliqeLimited” wrote “Lol, you are stuck in the 90's if you think everyone is still obsessing over the USA. Wake up! Nobody is rushing to your borders.” A netizen “aaronsim” wrote that “This likely won’t be good for the American economy especially with the World Cup happening in the next few months.”

The 75 countries affected are largely developing nations and such move highlights a long-standing preference in Washington for immigrants from wealthy countries over those from the developing world. While US officials justify the policy as a measure to prevent welfare abuse, the claim is exaggerated and serves a broader political agenda, Lü Xiang, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Thursday.

Such rhetoric helps cast immigrants as inherently “low quality” — portrayed as criminals, patients, or social burdens — to stoke fear and resentment within society. In this context, anti-immigration policies have been weaponized to mobilize political support by exploiting anxieties among some Americans who view immigrants as competitors for jobs and public resources, Lü said.

The US is fundamentally a nation of immigrants, a defining identity that has never changed. Yet immigrants are now being broadly stigmatized as criminals and blamed for social disorder, casting immigration as the source of all instability—an approach without historical precedent, Lü noted.

“Sweeping, indiscriminate deportations are being used as a political signal, deepening divisions across American society. Concentrated enforcement in Democratic-led states turns law enforcement into political theater—manufacturing disorder to serve electoral ends. This is a tactic without precedent in US history,” said Lü.