Trump administration makes major change in plan to ban foreign nationals traveling to the US from 43 countries

Trump Considers New Travel Ban: What You Need to Know ...

Published Apr 2, 2025

Visitors planning to holiday in America from 22 of the 43 countries whose citizens might face challenges at US passport control have received important news. The State Department has provided an update about plans to restrict foreign nationals from entering the US, after failing to meet the deadline established in President Donald Trump's executive order signed when he returned to the White House on January 20.

The order, called "Protecting the United States from foreign terrorists and other national security and public safety threats," gave government workers up to 60 days to create a detailed report on nations whose citizens will need additional screening. The March 21 deadline passed without completion.

State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce stated on March 31 that staff continue working to finish the report. "I can tell you that we're working on what the executive order asked for, which is not travel bans of course but the nature of restrictions from other countries if – whether or not they meet the standard of security and vetting that's required for entry into the United States," she told reporters.

Bruce explained the report has no set completion date, saying: "Again, because there's not a date, it doesn't mean that it's not being worked on. So we are all working to implement what President Trump has ordered."

Trump's suggested wide-ranging restrictions against citizens of 43 countries uses a traffic light system - complete travel prohibition, severely limited Visas, and countries given 60 days to address concerns... though the latter group now has an unlimited timeframe to respond to the State Department.

The 22 nations on the list were instructed to follow requests to supply the US with details about travelers planning to visit the country, plus information about those already present.

All travel banned