The State Department added 12 more nations on Wednesday to its list of countries whose citizens must post bonds up to $15,000 for U.S. visa applications.
This week’s additions bring the total list to 50 countries as part of the department’s continuing effort to crack down on people overstaying their visas, according to the Wednesday afternoon announcement.
Beginning on April 2, visa applicants from Cambodia, Ethiopia, Georgia, Grenada, Lesotho, Mauritius, Mongolia, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Seychelles and Tunisia will be required to pay bonds for B1 or B2 visas. These visas permit foreign travelers’ entry to the U.S. for business, medical or tourism purposes.
Applicants are required to post bonds at rates of $5,000, $10,000 or $15,000 depending on the applicant’s circumstances, which is determined by the consular officer overseeing the case, The Associated Press reported.
Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs Dylan Johnson said on Wednesday that the department has awarded 1,000 visas under this program and 97 percent of people who post bonds have returned to their home country on the required date.
“The visa bond program has already proven effective at drastically reducing the number of visa recipients who overstay their visas and illegally remain in the U.S.,” Johnson wrote in a post on the social platform X.
These fees are refunded to visa seekers who comply with their visa’s home return requirement.
The department said this move will save American taxpayers “hundreds of millions of dollars,” estimating $800 million in annual savings, by covering the deportation costs of people living illegally in the U.S.
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