(UNITED STATES) — The United States has not published a blanket list of countries that are “no longer eligible” for the Visa Waiver Program, and the program still lists 40 participating countries and territories as of July 9, 2026.

That distinction matters because a separate Department of State notice in 2026 restricted or suspended entry and visa issuance for nationals of 18 countries under other travel restrictions. Those restrictions did not amount to a broad rewrite of the Visa Waiver Program itself.

Current participants in the program still include the United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and most of Western Europe. No country is identified as newly removed from the Visa Waiver Program.

The confusion appears to stem from two different U.S. travel systems that operate under different rules. One covers countries whose nationals can seek travel under the Visa Waiver Program, while the other covers visa issuance and entry restrictions imposed through separate government action.

In 2026, the Department of State notice applied to nationals of Afghanistan, Burma, Burundi, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, and Yemen. The notice covered entry and visa issuance, not a blanket removal from the Visa Waiver Program list.

That means the question “which countries are no longer eligible for the Visa Waiver Program?” and the question “which countries now face U.S. travel restrictions?” produce different answers. Under current information, the first question yields no newly identified removals, while the second points to the 18 countries named in the Department of State action.

That line is plain. The United States has not published a blanket list of countries that are “no longer eligible” for the Visa Waiver Program, even as it separately tightened travel rules for certain nationals through visa and entry restrictions.

That separation is important in practical terms because the Visa Waiver Program is a specific framework with its own roster of participating countries and territories. A country facing visa limits or restricted or suspended entry under another policy is not automatically a country that was removed from the Visa Waiver Program.

As of July 9, 2026, the program’s count remains at 40 participating countries and territories. The current information cites examples rather than a full country-by-country roll call, naming the United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and most of Western Europe among those still in the program.

No blanket U.S. announcement declares that countries broadly lost Visa Waiver Program eligibility in 2026. Instead, the change identified is narrower and sits in a different legal and policy lane: visa issuance and entry restrictions on nationals of the 18 listed countries.

Those countries span several regions. They include countries in Africa such as Burundi, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, and Libya; countries in Asia such as Afghanistan, Burma, Iran, Laos, Turkmenistan, and Yemen; Caribbean states such as Cuba and Haiti; and Venezuela in South America.

The Department of State notice did not merge those countries into a revised Visa Waiver Program exclusion list. It identified them as subject to restrictions on entry and visa issuance under other travel measures.

The result is a narrower and more precise reading of the 2026 changes. Travelers and readers looking for a government list of countries “no longer eligible” for the Visa Waiver Program will not find one, because none is identified.

By contrast, anyone trying to determine which nationals face new U.S. travel barriers in 2026 is directed to the Department of State notice. That notice names Afghanistan, Burma, Burundi, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, and Yemen.

The distinction also affects how public claims about the program should be read. A statement that the United States “released a list of countries no longer eligible for visa waiver” goes further than current information supports, because no such blanket list is identified.

What it does support is a split picture in 2026: the Visa Waiver Program continues with 40 participating countries and territories, while a separate Department of State action imposed restricted or suspended entry and visa issuance for nationals of 18 countries outside that question.

That leaves the official picture with two clear points. The Visa Waiver Program itself still includes 40 participating countries and territories as of July 9, 2026, and the countries facing new U.S. travel restrictions are the 18 named in the Department of State notice, not a newly published roster of states removed from visa waiver eligibility.