13th March 2026

South Sudan among 36 nations at risk of partial or full US entry ban

Author: Lasuba Memo | Published: June 16, 2025

President Trump- credit | Alex Wong/Getty Images

Thirty-six countries, including South Sudan, Uganda, and Tanzania, have been given 60 days by the United States government to meet immigration benchmarks and requirements or face partial or full suspension of entry into the US, according to an internal State Department cable obtained by Reuters.

Earlier in April, US President Donald Trump revoked all existing visas issued to South Sudanese passport holders and barred further entries of nationals from the country. This action followed a failed deportation case involving a Congolese man and was part of Trump’s broader immigration crackdown.

Trump’s signed proclamation earlier this year banned entry from 12 countries, citing the need to protect the United States against “foreign terrorists” and other national security threats.

His latest plan seeks to expand this ban to more countries as part of efforts to deport hundreds of suspected gang members from El Salvador and Venezuelan nationals, as well as to limit enrollment of foreign students in US universities.

In the internal diplomatic cable signed by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the State Department outlined a dozen concerns regarding the countries listed and requested corrective action.

“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 cable said.

The countries that may face bans if they fail to address these concerns include Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Dominica, Ethiopia, Egypt, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, 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.

Several countries, including Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen, have already been banned earlier this year.

The African Union has expressed “deep concern” over the US’s expansion of entry bans.

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