United States | State Department expands list of countries subject to visa bond program and designated ports of entry

On March 18, 2026, the State Department announced it is “expanding its visa bond program to apply to a total of 50 countries on April 2 and will require foreign nationals from these countries to post a bond of $15,000 before receiving B-1 or B-2 visas for business and tourism in the United States,” and added all commercial airports to its required ports of entry list.

Key takeaways:

A total of 50 countries will be subject to visa bonds beginning April 2, 2026. The 12 countries added to the current list of 38 countries are Cambodia, Ethiopia, Georgia, Grenada, Lesotho, Mauritius, Mongolia, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Seychelles and Tunisia. A complete list of the countries subject to the program can be found here.

All commercial airports added to required ports of entry. All visa holders from designated countries subject to the visa bond program must enter and exit the United States through designated ports of entry (POE). The current update states, “Effective immediately, ports of entry include all commercial airports of entry, including CBP [Customs and Border Protection] preclearance locations. Visa bond holders may NOT use charter air, general aviation, land or sea ports of entry.” Previously, travelers were subject to designated POEs, which did not include any preclearance locations.

Additional information: The launch of the visa bond pilot program was announced in August. The pilot will run for 12 months from Aug. 20, 2025, until Aug. 5, 2026. More details on the bond payment process, required ports of entry, visa bond compliance and visa bond breach can be found here. During the pilot, there will not be a waiver application process.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

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