US visa bond list expands to 38 countries

The Trump administration is nearly tripling the number of countries whose passport holders will be required to post bonds of up to $15,000 to apply to enter the United States.

Less than a week after adding seven countries to the list of nations subject to visa bonds, bringing the total to 13, the State Department added 25 more. The bond requirement for the latest additions will take effect January 21.

The move means that 38 countries, most of them in Africa but some in Latin America and Asia, are now on the list.

It's the latest effort by the Trump administration to tighten requirements for entry to the US, including requiring citizens from all countries that require visas to sit for in-person interviews and disclose years of social media histories as well as detailed accounts of their and their families' previous travel and living arrangements.

US officials have defended the bonds, which can range from $5,000 up to $15,000, maintaining they are effective in ensuring that citizens of targeted countries do not overstay their visas.

Payment of the bond does not guarantee a visa will be granted, but the amount will be refunded if the visa is denied or when a visa holder demonstrates they have complied with the terms of visa.

The list is as follows:

The amount for the visa bond will be determined at the time of the visa interview, the department said.

As a condition of the bond, all visa holders who have posted a visa bond must enter and exit the United States through the designated ports of entry: Boston Logan International Airport, John F. Kennedy International Airport, and Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD).

Not doing this might lead to a denied entry or a departure that is not properly recorded, the department said.

Visa bond terms are set on the bond form (Department of Homeland Security’s Form I-352 Immigration Bonds) and on Travel.State.Gov. The bond will be cancelled and the money returned automatically in these situations:

The Department of Homeland Security will send cases where the visa holder may have broken the visa bond terms to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). This is to determine if there was a breach. It includes, but is not limited to, these situations:

 With inputs from agencies