US adds more nations, including Venezuela, to costly visa bond policy

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump's administration has put 25 more countries on a list of nations whose citizens could be required to post bonds of up to US$15,000 to apply for entry into the U.S., the State Department website showed on Tuesday.

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The US expanded its visa bond policy to 38 countries, effective January 21.
Travelers must post bonds of US$5,000-US$15,000 via Pay.gov when applying for B1/B2 visas.
The program aims to deter overstays but faces criticism from human rights groups.

The list mostly included countries from Africa, Latin America and South Asia. It had a total of 38 countries as of Tuesday. The policy for the newly added nations will go into effect on January 21, the State Department website said.

Venezuela, whose toppled leader Nicolas Maduro was seized by U.S. forces over the weekend and brought to New York, was also included in the list.

"Any citizen or national traveling on a passport issued by one of these countries, who is found otherwise eligible for a B1/B2 visa, must post a bond for US$5,000, US$10,000, or US$15,000," the State Department website said, adding the amount was determined at the time of the visa interview.

Applicants must agree to the terms of the bond through the U.S. Treasury Department's online payment platform, Pay.gov, the State Department said.

A State Department pilot program was launched in August with an initial list of nations.

The U.S. government has said the bonds seek to deter visitors from overstaying their visas intended for tourism or business purposes.

Since taking office last January, Trump, a Republican, has pursued a hard-line immigration policy, involving an aggressive deportation drive, revocations of visas and green cards and screening of social media posts and past speeches of immigrants.

Human rights groups have widely condemned Trump's immigration and travel-related policies, saying they curb due process guarantees and free speech. Trump and his allies say the policies seek to improve domestic security.