President Donald Trump’s administration is considering an expansion of its imposed travel ban — potentially prohibiting citizens from 36 more countries from entering the United States, according to a State Department memo reviewed by the Washington Post.
The 36 countries in question are: Angola; Antigua and Barbuda; Benin; Bhutan; Burkina Faso; Cabo Verde; Cambodia; Cameroon; Democratic Republic of Congo; Djibouti; Dominica; Ethiopia; Egypt; Gabon; Gambia; Ghana; Ivory Coast; Kyrgyzstan; Liberia; Malawi; Mauritania; Niger; Nigeria; Saint Kitts and Nevis; Saint Lucia; Sao Tome and Principe; Senegal; South Sudan; Syria; Tanzania; Tonga; Tuvalu; Uganda; Vanuatu; Zambia and Zimbabwe, the Washington Post reports.
Trump had previously signed an order on June 4 that bars citizens from 12 countries — Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen — from entering the country. The White House claims that the purpose of the ban is to protect the country from “foreign terrorists and other national security and public safety threats”.
The order also partially restricts entry for citizens of Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela, the BBC reported.
The State Department memo, which listed the 36 new countries whose citizens could face restrictions, was signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, according to The Washington Post.
The memo outlines several concerns the department has about the countries and seeks “corrective action,” Reuters reports.
“The Department has identified 36 countries of concern that might be recommended for full or partial suspension of entry if they do not meet established benchmarks and requirements within 60 days,” the memo reads, according to Reuters.
The memo claims that some countries have “no competent or cooperative central government authority” that can produce identity documents or other civil documents, according to The Washington Post.
The memo also states that some countries had citizens who overstayed their visas in the United States, according to the Washington Post.
An additional concern, according to the memo, is related to citizens of the country who were involved in acts of terrorism in the United States, or “antisemitic and anti-American activity,” according to Reuters.
The State Department memo set a deadline of 8 a.m. on Wednesday when the 36 countries are expected to provide an initial action plan to meet the requirements, according to The Washington Post.
It was unclear when the proposed travel ban would take effect if the demands weren’t met, the Washington Post reports.
During his first term, Trump tried to impose a travel ban on citizens from Iran, Iraq, Syria, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen and Libya. It faced several court challenges until a third version of the ban was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2018.
Under the Biden administration, the travel ban was rescinded. During the 2024 campaign, Trump pledged to bring back the travel ban — and to expand it to bar refugees from Gaza from entering the United States, according to Time Magazine.
“Remember the famous travel ban? We didn’t take people from certain areas of the world,” Trump said in the September 2024 Time article. “We’re not taking them from infested countries.”
