Nigerians and other African applicants seeking United States visas will now be required to deposit up to $20,000 as a condition for entry, under a new policy aimed at curbing visa overstays.
The measure, which comes into force on Monday, August 3, 2026, formalises a Visa Bond Programme introduced on a pilot basis in August 2025.
US authorities said the decision followed concerns over increasing cases of visitors remaining in the country beyond their authorised stay, as well as gaps in data sharing and identity verification by some countries.
Under the policy, consular officers will assess each applicant and determine the bond amount—set at $10,000, $15,000 or $20,000—based on factors such as travel purpose, financial status, employment and ties to the applicant’s home country.
The bond will be refunded without interest after the visitor leaves the United States within the approved period and complies with visa conditions. It will be forfeited in cases of violation.
The US Department of State, which announced the policy, said it is backed by Executive Order 14159, titled “Protecting the American People Against Invasion,” directing federal agencies to strengthen immigration compliance mechanisms, including bond administration.
According to the department, the programme targets countries with high overstay rates and weaknesses in information exchange, identity management and document security.
During the pilot phase, 50 countries were included, with qualified B-1/B-2 visa applicants required to pay up to $15,000, depending on consular evaluation.
The State Department said the pilot recorded a sharp decline in overstays, with fewer than 50 cases reported in the first 10 months, compared to 45,488 overstays from the same group of countries in 2024.
However, the programme also significantly reduced visa demand. Visa issuance for the affected countries dropped by 83 per cent between August 2025 and July 2026, as nearly half of about 20,000 applicants declined to pay the bond. Total deposits during the pilot were estimated at $115 million.
Data from the US Department of Homeland Security show that countries outside the Visa Waiver Programme (VWP) account for a higher proportion of overstays. In 2024, there were 269,382 B-1/B-2 overstays among non-VWP countries, excluding Mexico and Canada. The overstay rate stood at 2.06 per cent for non-VWP countries, compared to 0.44 per cent for VWP participants.
“The 2025 visa bond pilot, which provided a framework for the Department of State, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of the Treasury to assess the feasibility of administering a visa bond programme, has provided sufficient data to suggest that a visa bond program is an effective tool for enforcing compliance among bonded visa holders,” the department said.
