The State Department will require $15,000 bonds from travelers from dozens of countries starting April 2, a policy officials say has already cut overstays dramatically.
By Ekjot Singh | March 18, 2026 | Surrey
The State Department announced Tuesday it will expand its visa bond program to a total of 50 countries beginning April 2, requiring visitors from those nations to deposit $15,000 before receiving B-1 or B-2 visas for business or tourism travel to the United States. The bond is refunded to travelers who return home in compliance with their visa terms, or who never travel.
The expansion adds 12 new countries to the existing list of 38, driven by immigration risk factors including historical overstay rates. Officials cited the program’s early results as evidence of its effectiveness: of nearly 1,000 foreign nationals issued visas under the program so far, 97 percent returned home on time.
In the final year of the Biden administration, more than 44,000 visitors from the countries now covered by the bond program overstayed their visas and remained in the United States illegally.
The program also carries a financial rationale. The department estimates it costs American taxpayers an average of more than $18,000 to remove a person in the country unlawfully. Officials claim the expanded bond program is saving up to $800 million annually in avoided deportation costs.
12 NEW COUNTRIES ADDED ON APRIL 2
Cambodia, Ethiopia, Georgia, Grenada, Lesotho, Mauritius, Mongolia, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Seychelles, and Tunisia.
38 COUNTRIES ALREADY ENROLLED
Algeria, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Botswana, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Central African Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Cuba, Djibouti, Dominica, Fiji, Gabon, The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kyrgyzstan, Malawi, Mauritania, Namibia, Nepal, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
The State Department said it may continue adding countries to the program based on ongoing assessments of immigration risk. Officials did not specify a ceiling on the number of nations that could eventually be included.
