Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The United States State Department has unveiled a sweeping plan to drastically reduce the number of its embassies and consulates in Africa that process visas for foreign nationals, cutting the number from nearly 50 to just 20 in the coming weeks. The decision, part of the Trump administration’s broader immigration crackdown, was communicated to U.S. diplomats, including consular chiefs, during a conference call last Friday, according to three U.S. officials and an internal memo obtained by The Associated Press (AP). Secretary of State Marco Rubio approved the directive last week.
According to the memo, the 20 “hubs” that will retain full visa processing services are: Abidjan, Ivory Coast; Accra, Ghana; Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Cape Town, South Africa; Dakar, Senegal; Dar-Es-Salaam, Tanzania; Djibouti, Djibouti; Johannesburg, South Africa; Kampala, Uganda; Kigali, Rwanda; Kinshasa, Congo; Lagos, Nigeria; Lome, Togo; Luanda, Angola; Malabo, Equatorial Guinea; Monrovia, Liberia; Nairobi, Kenya; Port Louis, Mauritius; Praia, Cape Verde; and Yaounde, Cameroon.
Crucially for Nigeria, while the U.S. consulate in Lagos has been retained as a full visa-processing hub, the U.S. embassy in Abuja will lose its visa processing functions. This means that Nigerians seeking U.S. visas will now have to travel to Lagos for interviews and biometrics. Consular sections in non-hub countries will remain open but will be limited in the services they can offer. They will still be able to assist American citizens with passport renewals and emergency consular requests, as well as handle special national interest cases and diplomatic visa applications.
The move is the latest in a series of measures by the Trump administration to restrict immigration to the United States. It comes on the heels of a December 2025 proclamation that expanded entry limits to 39 countries, many of them in Africa, imposing full or partial suspensions on both immigrant and nonimmigrant visas. Additionally, a handful of African nationals, including Nigerians, already face the possibility of posting bonds of up to $15,000 as a requirement for B1/B2 visa applications. The administration has also argued that the consolidation is necessary to align resources with national security priorities and to maintain rigorous standards of security screening and vetting.
The decision has already drawn sharp reactions from African governments and travel industry stakeholders. Critics warn that the reduction will impose significant travel challenges and costs on applicants from non-hub countries, who will now be forced to travel to one of the 20 approved sites for their visa interviews. This could particularly affect citizens of smaller or more remote nations, adding layers of bureaucracy and expense to an already daunting process.
The State Department has not yet announced a specific date for the implementation of the changes, but officials have indicated that they are expected to take effect in June 2026. The department also did not address the specific issues raised in the memo, but reiterated that it is “constantly evaluating its overseas operations in order to deploy taxpayer resources in a way that advances America’s priorities as efficiently and effectively as possible.”
The move has also coincided with other disruptions to U.S. visa services in Africa, including travel bans on certain countries, the bond requirement, and recent travel restrictions linked to the Ebola outbreak in Central Africa. The cumulative effect has been to make it increasingly difficult for Africans to secure U.S. visas, a trend that has alarmed human rights groups and immigration advocates who accuse the administration of systematically closing the door on African immigrants.
As the June deadline approaches, would-be travelers, students, and businesspeople across Africa are now scrambling to understand how the new rules will affect their plans. For Nigerians, the closure of visa processing at the Abuja embassy represents a significant logistical hurdle. With Lagos being the sole remaining hub, applicants from the northern and eastern parts of the country will face long and expensive journeys to the commercial capital.
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