The Trump administration has ordered U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide to immediately stop processing all visa applications from Afghan nationals, effectively freezing the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program for Afghans who worked with the United States during its 20-year presence in Afghanistan.
A State Department cable sent Friday instructed consular officers to deny all immigrant and non-immigrant visa requests from Afghan passport holders, including SIV applicants. The directive came two days after a former member of an Afghan CIA-backed unit was accused of shooting two U.S. National Guard soldiers in Washington, D.C., one of whom later died.
The State Department referred to a statement by Secretary of State Marco Rubio posted on X, where he said visa issuance for “ALL individuals” using Afghan passports would be paused.
The cable, first reported by the New York Times, said the suspension was necessary to ensure applicant identity and eligibility under U.S. law. But advocacy groups said the move reflected a broader effort by the Trump administration to block Afghan nationals from entering the country.
“This is the outcome they have been driving toward for months,” said Shawn VanDiver, president of AfghanEvac.
While existing appointments will not be canceled, consular officers have been instructed to refuse all applications. Any unprinted visas must be withdrawn and canceled, and printed visas must be destroyed.
Earlier this week, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services halted processing of Afghan immigration requests indefinitely.
Roughly 200,000 Afghans have entered the United States since 2021 through refugee and SIV programs. Another 265,000 are still awaiting decisions abroad, including about 180,000 SIV applicants, according to AfghanEvac.
Since returning to office in January, Trump has sharply intensified immigration enforcement, deploying federal agents to major cities and tightening asylum access at the southern border. The latest restrictions point to a renewed focus on limiting legal immigration as well.
