Shibbir Ahmed, Washington DC — The United States has announced new visa restrictions on foreign nationals accused by the Trump administration of undermining democratically elected governments through corruption or narcotrafficking in the Western Hemisphere. The U.S. Department of State said the new policy applies under Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act and can also affect the immediate family members of targeted individuals. The provision allows the United States to restrict entry when an individual’s presence or proposed activities could have potentially serious adverse consequences for U.S. foreign policy.

The State Department said the policy follows commitments made at the Doral Summit and reaffirmed in the Shield of the Americas leaders’ statement issued September 22. The administration said the United States would coordinate sanctions, designations and financial measures against individuals involved in activities that threaten security, the rule of law and democratic governance.

Initial visa-restriction actions were announced for nationals of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.

In Bolivia, the State Department said it had taken steps to impose restrictions on 12 nationals and their families, including prosecutors, judges, a former justice minister, a police colonel, a former customs official and a private businessman. Existing U.S. visas for the named individuals were revoked, according to the department. Nine additional Bolivian nationals who do not currently hold U.S. visas were also made generally ineligible to receive visas, along with their families.

In Colombia, the United States said it revoked the visas of businessman Euclides Antonio Torres Romero and Senator Martha Isabel Peralta Epieyu and imposed corresponding restrictions on their families. The State Department identified Torres Romero as a businessman whose conglomerate operates mainly in the energy, traffic-signal and public-lighting sectors. Peralta Epieyu is affiliated with Colombia’s Historic Pact and the Alternative Indigenous and Social Movement, according to the department.

The State Department said two Ecuadorian nationals were also targeted under the new policy, with their visas revoked. The individuals were not identified in the announcement.

In Peru, the department said it revoked the existing U.S. visa of Juan Carlos Nunez Matos, a judge of the First Circuit Constitutional Court in Lima, and imposed restrictions on his family.

Separately, the State Department publicly designated Bolivia’s Attorney General Roger Mariaca under Section 7031(c) of the National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2026.

The department alleged that Mariaca was involved in significant corruption and had abused his public positions by soliciting and accepting bribes to facilitate narcotrafficking and helping violent criminals evade justice. The State Department said the designation makes Mariaca and his immediate family members generally ineligible for entry into the United States.

The allegations against Mariaca are claims made by the U.S. government in announcing the designation.

Section 7031(c) allows the Secretary of State to publicly or privately designate foreign officials and their immediate family members when the Secretary has credible information indicating involvement in significant corruption or gross violations of human rights.

The State Department said the new visa restriction policy provides the United States with a mechanism to act as evidence develops and to coordinate measures with partner governments.

The administration said the measures are intended to support democratic governance, security and the rule of law across the Western Hemisphere while targeting corruption and narcotrafficking.

Shibbir Ahmed, Washington, DC — The Trump administration announced a new visa restriction policy Monday aimed at pressuring foreign officials to help resolve international parental child abduction cases involving children taken across international borders.

The policy targets foreign government officials, judges, judicial administrators, law enforcement officials and others who are determined to be responsible for, or complicit in, intentionally obstructing the prompt resolution of international parental child abduction cases.

Under the new policy, the United States may restrict visa issuance to individuals who intentionally fail to implement or comply with laws, policies or court orders intended to resolve such cases and facilitate the return of children to their country of habitual residence. The restrictions may also apply to the immediate family members of targeted individuals. The State Department said the policy provides the department with an additional accountability tool to encourage countries to meet their obligations and cooperate in resolving cases.

“The Department proactively works to prevent abductions and facilitate the quick and safe return of abducted children to their country of habitual residence,” the department said in its announcement.

The administration said the policy is intended to strengthen U.S. efforts to protect American children abducted across international borders and reunite them with their parents. The State Department also said the measures are intended to promote accountability when countries fail to meet their obligations under international law. The new visa restrictions are being implemented pursuant to Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

The department emphasized that the United States remains committed to protecting the safety and well-being of American children involved in international parental child abduction cases.

Shibbir Ahmed, Washington DC — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has announced a new visa restriction policy targeting individuals who knowingly engage in or facilitate commercial “birth tourism” to the United States. Under the policy, announced September 23, the State Department said it will use Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act to restrict visa issuance to people involved in commercial birth-tourism operations. The policy specifically targets owners, operators and managers of birth-tourism networks, visa “fixers” who coach applicants to commit fraud, foreign medical providers who knowingly facilitate such travel, and others who knowingly support or enable the practice.

Rubio said foreign commercial birth-tourism networks have exploited the U.S. immigration system by charging large sums of money to arrange births in the United States for the purpose of obtaining U.S. citizenship for children. The statement also accused some networks of coaching foreign nationals to provide false information on visa applications and of facilitating fraudulent use of Medicaid.

“The Trump Administration is using every tool at our disposal to defend the integrity of U.S. citizenship, protect American public benefits and U.S. taxpayers from exploitation, and safeguard our national security,” Rubio said in the statement.

The State Department has already prohibited birth tourism as a permissible purpose for a U.S. visitor visa. Its current visitor-visa guidance defines birth tourism as travel to the United States primarily to give birth so that the child obtains U.S. citizenship, and states that such travel is not permissible on a visitor visa.

The department previously introduced specific rules addressing birth tourism in 2020. Under those rules, consular officers were directed to deny B-visa applications when they had reason to believe an applicant’s primary purpose for traveling to the United States was to give birth in order to obtain U.S. citizenship for the child.

The newly announced policy goes beyond the individual seeking to travel for birth tourism by specifically targeting people and organizations that facilitate or profit from the practice. According to Rubio’s statement, certain family members of individuals covered by the restrictions may also be subject to the new visa restrictions.

The announcement comes as the State Department has continued to expand visa screening and vetting measures. On September 18, the department announced that, effective October 1, online-presence review would be expanded to additional nonimmigrant visa categories, saying the screening process is intended to identify applicants who may be inadmissible or who fail to establish eligibility for the visa requested.

The new birth-tourism policy is being implemented under existing provisions of U.S. immigration law rather than through a change to the statutory citizenship rules themselves. The announcement specifically concerns visa restrictions on people involved in or facilitating commercial birth tourism.

Shibbir Ahmed, Washington DC — The U.S. Department of State announced Monday that it is taking steps to impose visa restrictions on 32 individuals accused of being responsible for or complicit in defrauding Americans through cybercrime, cyber-enabled crime and related activities. The State Department said the majority of those targeted are affiliated with the Prince Group Transnational Criminal Organization (TCO), which has been the subject of multiple U.S. sanctions actions over its alleged role in scam operations targeting Americans.

Under the latest action, any valid U.S. visas held by the individuals have been revoked. The State Department said the restrictions are being imposed under Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

The department said cybercriminal networks scam Americans out of tens of billions of dollars each year. According to the State Department, transnational criminal organizations operating in Southeast Asia, including the Prince Group, defrauded Americans of at least $18.2 billion in 2025 through cyber-enabled scams.

US Expands Action Against Prince Group

The visa restrictions add to a series of U.S. government actions targeting the Prince Group and other Southeast Asian scam networks. The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control designated the Prince Group as a Transnational Criminal Organization in October 2025, imposing sanctions on 146 associated individuals and entities. Treasury said the organization operated scam compounds and cyberfraud operations targeting victims in the United States and elsewhere.

Treasury expanded its action against the Prince Group on June 23, 2026, sanctioning nine individuals and 26 entities linked to the organization, including individuals described as leaders, investors in scam compounds and operators of front companies. Treasury said the June action built on its October 2025 designation and was intended to disrupt financial networks connected to scam operations and money laundering.

Visa Restrictions Target Individuals Connected to Cybercrime

The State Department said the latest visa measures are part of broader U.S. efforts to use immigration and other authorities against individuals connected to cybercrime and fraud affecting Americans. The department said those subject to the restrictions will be denied entry to the United States, while previously issued valid visas have been revoked. The action comes as U.S. agencies continue coordinating efforts to disrupt overseas scam networks, financial channels and other infrastructure used to target American victims.

In October 2025, Treasury described the Prince Group as a Cambodia-based transnational criminal organization whose network included scam compounds and businesses involved in online investment scams and money laundering. Treasury said the network had targeted U.S. citizens and others worldwide.

The latest State Department action represents the use of visa restrictions alongside financial sanctions and other enforcement measures aimed at individuals and networks accused of participating in cyber-enabled fraud against Americans.