The United States has announced that it will discontinue routine visa services at its embassy in Abuja and 24 other diplomatic posts across Africa from August 1, 2026, as part of a major realignment of its overseas visa operations.
In a statement, the US Department of State said the move is aimed at strengthening national security, reducing government waste, and ensuring more consistent standards for visa screening, vetting, and adjudication through regional processing hubs.
The department said the administration of President Donald Trump is restructuring overseas operations to better advance US priorities while improving the efficiency of its consular services.
According to the statement, the State Department regularly reviews its global operations to ensure resources are aligned with America’s national interests.
“This includes a visa process that maintains rigorous standards of security screening and vetting and aligns resources and operational capacity with America’s national interests.
“The Trump administration has no higher priority than the safety and security of Americans, and the State Department will continue to provide Americans with appropriate consular services and assistance at diplomatic posts around the world,” the statement said.
Other African diplomatic posts affected by the realignment include Asmara, Bamako, Banjul, Brazzaville, Bujumbura, Conakry, Cotonou, Durban, Freetown, Gaborone, Harare, Juba, Libreville, Lilongwe, Lusaka, Maputo, Maseru, Mbabane, N’Djamena, Niamey, Nouakchott, Ouagadougou and Windhoek.
The State Department clarified that the changes will not affect the operating status of the affected embassies and consulates, which will continue carrying out their diplomatic and consular responsibilities.
It also stressed that the policy does not affect any currently valid US visas already issued to travellers.
The department added that the regional hub model for visa processing has already proven successful in several African countries and parts of Europe.
Meanwhile, routine visa services will continue at US embassies and consulates in Lagos, Abidjan, Accra, Addis Ababa, Cape Town, Dakar, Dar es Salaam, Djibouti, Johannesburg, Kampala, Kigali, Kinshasa, Lomé, Luanda, Malabo, Monrovia, Nairobi, Port Louis, Praia and Yaoundé.
