(UNITED STATES) The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has recommended that the Biden administration expand the current travel ban list to include at least 10 more countries, most of them in sub-Saharan Africa, in what officials describe as part of a broader effort to tighten security checks and increase cooperation on immigration enforcement. The move would build on the June 2025 travel ban signed by President Trump, which already fully restricts entry from 12 countries and partially restricts entry from 7 others.
According to the internal recommendation, DHS wants the administration to widen the list after reviewing which countries fall short of U.S. demands on passport vetting, information sharing, and acceptance of deported nationals. The department has identified at least 10 additional countries, mainly in sub-Saharan Africa, that it says are failing to meet these standards and could therefore be added to the travel ban list if they do not improve their practices within a set timeframe.
The current June 2025 travel ban fully suspends entry for nationals of Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen. It also partially suspends entry for nationals of Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela. These restrictions remain in place as the administration weighs whether to use the new DHS recommendation to expand the list again in the coming months.
The internal memo underpinning the recommendation states that if countries do not improve their passport vetting, data and identity information sharing with the United States, and cooperation in accepting deported nationals, more countries—mainly in sub-Saharan Africa—will be added to the travel ban list. Officials have tied the possible expansion directly to how governments respond to U.S. demands over the next two months, setting a clear deadline for policy change abroad.
DHS is grounding its push for expansion in three main concerns: inadequate vetting and information sharing by certain foreign governments, high visa overstay rates among their nationals, and a pattern of some countries refusing to accept their citizens when the United States tries to deport them. In the view of U.S. officials, countries that do not provide reliable identity data, that allow their citizens to stay in the United States beyond the period permitted on their visas at high rates, or that block deportation flights are not meeting basic conditions for continued unrestricted travel.
The current framework for the travel ban traces back to a report presented on April 9, 2025, by the Secretary of State in coordination with the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security. That report recommended restrictions based specifically on the criteria now cited again in the latest DHS recommendation: passport vetting practices, information sharing with U.S. authorities, and cooperation in accepting deported nationals. The new push to add at least 10 more countries is a continuation of that same policy logic, extended further into sub-Saharan Africa.
The June 2025 travel ban is not a blanket bar on every type of traveler from listed countries. The policy includes several categories of exceptions. Legal permanent residents of the United States are not subject to the ban. Dual nationals traveling on passports from countries that are not on the list are also exempt. Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens, refugees, Afghan Special Immigrant Visa holders, and athletes traveling to major sports events are among those carved out of the restrictions.
These exceptions mean that even from the 12 countries facing a full suspension of entry, some people can still legally enter the United States if they fall into one of the exempt categories. For the 7 countries facing partial suspensions, only certain types of visas or travelers are restricted, while others remain allowed. Any decision to add at least 10 more countries to the travel ban list will have to be fitted into this existing structure of full suspensions, partial suspensions, and case-by-case exceptions.
The administration has already laid out a timetable for revisiting the travel ban. Under the current rules, officials can recommend adjustments to the list every 180 days starting September 2, 2025. At each 180‑day mark, the list can be amended to add new countries that fail to meet U.S. vetting and cooperation standards, or to remove countries that have taken steps to comply. The DHS recommendation to add at least 10 more countries now is designed to operate within that regular review schedule.
As part of the June 2025 travel ban framework, the administration has also signaled that up to 36 additional countries could ultimately be added if they fail to meet U.S. vetting and screening requirements within 60 days of being notified. That means the at least 10 sub-Saharan African nations named in the DHS recommendation may be only the first wave of potential additions, with many more at risk if they do not change course. For governments that depend on travel and migration links with the United States, the new warning raises the stakes of how quickly they can adjust their security and documentation systems.
The focus on high visa overstay rates shows how the travel ban policy reaches beyond border screening and into the behavior of people already inside the country. When a person arrives on a temporary visa and then stays beyond the date they are allowed to remain, this is recorded as a visa overstay. DHS has flagged countries whose nationals are seen to overstay at high rates as candidates for sharper restrictions on future travel, treating the pattern as evidence that cooperation with U.S. immigration rules is weak.
Another central factor is whether countries are willing to accept their own nationals when the United States decides to deport them. Some governments slow or refuse to issue travel documents needed for removal, making it difficult or impossible to carry out deportations. Under the June 2025 travel ban approach, such lack of cooperation is itself a trigger for possible inclusion on the list of restricted countries. DHS is now using that same benchmark in arguing for the latest expansion.
The emphasis on identity verification and passport vetting reflects U.S. concern that some countries do not have reliable systems to confirm who their travelers are or to share that information with American authorities. When governments fail to share criminal, security, or identity data, the United States treats this as a security risk and, under the current policy, as a reason to consider limiting travel. The June 2025 travel ban and the new DHS recommendation both rely heavily on this standard.
While the DHS push centers on security and immigration control, the practical effect of any expansion would be to sharply limit who can travel from affected countries to the United States, whether for work, study, family visits, or tourism. For nationals of Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen already facing a full suspension of entry, the policy has shut down most legal paths to visit or join relatives in the country, apart from the listed exceptions. Adding at least 10 more countries, mainly in sub-Saharan Africa, would extend that reality to millions more people relying on U.S. visas.
For now, the DHS recommendation is one step in a process that involves multiple agencies. The Secretary of State and the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security are central figures in shaping the final list. The administration will be able to use the 180‑day review cycle starting in September 2025 to decide whether to adopt the proposal to add at least 10 more countries, to go further and approach the upper limit of 36 potential additions, or to scale back restrictions on countries that have improved their cooperation.
As the policy framework stands, the June 2025 travel ban remains a living document rather than a fixed list. With DHS pressing for a wider range of nations—especially in sub-Saharan Africa—to be brought under its terms, the coming months will determine whether the current group of 12 fully banned and 7 partially restricted countries marks the high-water point, or whether the list will grow substantially under the next 180‑day review and beyond. Information on existing travel and entry restrictions is available from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which oversees implementation of the travel ban policy.
DHS has urged the administration to expand the June 2025 travel ban by adding at least 10 more countries, largely in sub‑Saharan Africa, due to inadequate passport vetting, poor data sharing, high visa overstay rates and refusal to accept deported nationals. The June 2025 order already fully suspends entry for 12 countries and partially for 7; officials can revise the list every 180 days beginning Sept. 2, 2025, and up to 36 additional countries could face restrictions if they fail to comply.
