The Trump travel ban on Venezuela, in force since June 9, 2025 and tightened effective January 1, 2026, partially restricts entry by Venezuelan nationals into the United States. It suspends all immigrant visas and blocks B-1 and B-2 visitor, F and M student, and J exchange visitor nonimmigrant visas. Other nonimmigrant visas may still be issued, but consular officers are directed to shorten their validity. The restrictions apply to Venezuelans who were outside the United States on June 9, 2025 and did not already hold a valid visa.1White House. Restricting the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the United States
Lawful permanent residents are not affected. Neither are dual nationals traveling on a passport from a country not on the ban list, nor holders of diplomatic or NATO-category visas.1White House. Restricting the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the United States
Who Can Still Qualify After the December Expansion
The June 2025 proclamation automatically exempted immediate relatives of US citizens — spouses, minor children, and parents — along with approved adoption visas and Afghan Special Immigrant Visa holders. Proclamation 10998, signed December 16, 2025 and effective January 1, 2026, removed those categorical exceptions. Venezuela stayed in the partial-restriction tier, and the affected visa categories did not change, but the family exemption is gone.2NAFSA. Proclamation December 16, 2025 Travel Ban Effective January 1, 2026
The administration justified the change by arguing that familial ties “can serve — and, in the past, have in fact served — as unique vectors for fraudulent, criminal, or even terrorist activity.”3White House. Restricting and Limiting the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the Security of the United States
A Venezuelan applicant who previously would have entered under the family-relative exception, such as the spouse of a US citizen seeking an immigrant visa, must now obtain a discretionary national interest waiver from the Secretary of State or Secretary of Homeland Security. The State Department has said applicants may still submit applications and attend visa interviews, but they may be found ineligible under the proclamation.4State Department. Suspension of Visa Issuance to Foreign Nationals to Protect the Security of the United States Case-by-case national interest waivers are also available in principle from the Secretary of State, Secretary of Homeland Security, or Attorney General.5American Immigration Council. Trump 2025 Travel Ban
Athletes and support staff traveling for the World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting events designated by the Secretary of State remain exempt.1White House. Restricting the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the United States
The $5,000 to $15,000 Visa Bond
Getting a B-1/B-2 visa approved is not the end of the process. A separate policy effective January 21, 2026 requires Venezuelan nationals who are approved for a B-1/B-2 visitor visa to post a refundable cash bond of $5,000, $10,000, or $15,000 before the visa is issued. The consular officer sets the amount during the visa interview, drawing on Department of Homeland Security overstay data from fiscal year 2024.6State Department. Countries Subject to Visa Bonds
The conditions on bonded travel are strict. Bonded travelers must enter and exit through designated commercial airports; they cannot use land, sea, or charter air ports of entry. The bond is refunded if the traveler departs on time or does not use the visa. It is forfeited if the traveler overstays, departs late, or applies to adjust immigration status, which includes filing an asylum claim.6State Department. Countries Subject to Visa Bonds Posting the bond does not guarantee that the visa will be issued.7U.S. Embassy Venezuela. Visas
Because the United States and Venezuela do not maintain formal diplomatic relations and the US Embassy in Caracas has been closed since March 2019, Venezuelan applicants must apply at the US Embassy in Bogotá, Colombia.7U.S. Embassy Venezuela. Visas
Why Venezuela Was Included
The June 2025 proclamation cited Venezuela’s lack of a “competent or cooperative central authority for issuing passports or civil documents,” inadequate screening and vetting, and the country’s history of refusing to accept deported nationals. It also flagged a B-1/B-2 visa overstay rate of 9.83 percent among Venezuelan nationals for fiscal year 2023.8White House. Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Restricts the Entry of Foreign Nationals
The security argument leaned on the administration’s 2025 designation of the Tren de Aragua gang as both a Foreign Terrorist Organization and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist organization. The administration said the Maduro government’s failure to control its borders and its refusal to act against the gang had facilitated its infiltration into the United States.9GovInfo. Proclamation 10903 – Invocation of the Alien Enemies Act Regarding the Invasion of the United States by Tren De Aragua
Deportation arrangements between the two countries have been volatile. In early 2025 Venezuela agreed to accept deportees, suspended the arrangement in March over a dispute about US oil sanctions on Chevron, then resumed flights later that month.10BBC News. Venezuela Agrees to Resume Repatriation Flights From US
How This Ban Differs From the 2017 Version
Venezuela was included in Proclamation 9645, signed September 24, 2017 and often called “Travel Ban 3.0,” but that version reached only a narrow group: officials from specific Venezuelan government agencies, including the intelligence service, immigration service, and foreign ministry, and their immediate families. Those officials were barred from B-1 and B-2 visas. Other Venezuelan nationals faced enhanced vetting but no visa bar. President Biden rescinded those restrictions on his first day in office in January 2021.11NAFSA. Executive Order Travel Ban NAFSA Resources
The current ban applies to all Venezuelan nationals across the immigrant category and four nonimmigrant categories, not just government officials.
Other Policies Stacking on Top
The travel ban is one piece of a larger shift. Two other changes have compounded its effect on Venezuelans already in the United States or hoping to come.
The CHNV humanitarian parole program, which had let nationals of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela enter on a temporary basis, was terminated on March 25, 2025. More than 117,000 Venezuelans had obtained parole under it between January 2023 and December 2024. The administration argued that the program’s categorical design was inconsistent with the statutory requirement that parole be granted case by case.12Federal Register. Termination of Parole Processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans On May 30, 2025, the Supreme Court allowed the termination to proceed, pausing a lower-court ruling that had required individual review of each revocation.13SCOTUSblog. Supreme Court Allows DHS to End Parole for a Half Million Noncitizens
Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelans has also been revoked. The 2021 TPS designation was terminated effective November 7, 2025, and in October 2025 the Supreme Court allowed termination of the 2023 designation to take immediate effect. An estimated 607,000 Venezuelan nationals held TPS as of January 2025, the largest nationality group with the status.14USCIS. Temporary Protected Status Designated Country: Venezuela The DHS termination notice cited concerns about Tren de Aragua members being present within the TPS-eligible population.15Federal Register. Termination of the 2021 Designation of Venezuela for Temporary Protected Status
Where the Legal Challenges Stand
Several lawsuits have been filed, but none has produced broad relief for Venezuelan applicants.
In August 2025, US District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan ruled for 82 diversity visa applicants from banned countries, finding that the proclamation did not authorize the State Department to deny their visas outright. The ruling reached only those plaintiffs, and only those whose visas had been placed on hold rather than formally denied. The administration retained the ability to turn those individuals away at ports of entry, and a State Department spokesperson called the decision “wrongful judicial overreach.”16Politico. Donald Trump Travel Ban Visas Ruling
A July 2025 ruling from a federal judge in Seattle favorable to refugee admissions was quickly put on hold by a federal appeals court.16Politico. Donald Trump Travel Ban Visas Ruling
In January 2026, Judge Sooknanan dismissed Thein v. Trump, in which diversity visa applicants argued that 8 U.S.C. § 1182(f), the statute underlying the ban, violated the non-delegation doctrine and separation of powers. Citing Trump v. Hawaii (2018), the judge called that argument “borderline frivolous” and held that the proclamation fell within the president’s broad statutory authority over immigration. A related case, Ariani v. Rubio, reached the same conclusion in December 2025.17National Foundation for American Policy. Thein v. Trump, Civil Action No. 25-2369
The proclamation directs the Secretary of State to report to the President within 90 days of the June 2025 order, and every 180 days after, on whether restrictions on each country should be continued, terminated, modified, or expanded. As of the December 2025 expansion, Venezuela remained in the partial-restriction tier with no public indication of a downgrade under review.1White House. Restricting the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the United States