14ymedio, Madrid, 5 June 2025 — US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation this Wednesday restricting most visas for Cubans and citizens of six other countries who wish to enter this nation. The document also includes a total ban on 12 nationalities. “These restrictions apply to the entry of both immigrants and non-immigrants,” says the text, which has been expected since the release in March of a draft that advanced this new policy.
The 12 countries for which all visas are abolished are Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. National security and counter-terrorism are invoked for all; they also have in common the absence of a government which can guarantee, either through lack of competent and centralized authorities or through lack of determined cooperation, reliable information on its nationals.
Likewise, seven other countries will have their visas restricted, with Cuba being one of them. In the specific case of the island, reference is made first to its membership on the list of states sponsoring terrorism drawn up by the State Department. “The government of Cuba does not cooperate or share enough police information with the United States,” criticizes the document, which also recalls the island’s traditional refusal to accept deportations, despite the fact that in 2024 they received 1,384, of whom 978 arrived from the US.
In the specific case of the island, reference is made first to its membership on the list of states sponsoring terrorism drawn up by the State Department
“According to the Report on Excess of Stay, Cuba had an excessive stay rate with B1 and B2 visas of 7.69%, and with F, M and J visas of 18.75%,” specifies the text. Consequently, the US suspends the entry of Cubans with B1 and B2 visas (business and tourism, respectively), F and M (academic and technical studies), and J (cultural exchanges). “Consular officials shall reduce the validity of any other non-immigrant visa issued to Cuban nationals to the extent permitted by law,” adds the paragraph.
There is a section for exceptions in the extensive document, up to nine. Among them is one that has been at the center of many Cubans’ concerns since the draft of this proclamation began to circulate. “It prevents the suspension or restriction of entry to legal residents in the US,” says the text, tempering the fears of those who were afraid to travel to the island for any reason and then be denied entry to the US on their return.
In addition, persons with dual nationality, foreigners with other visas – officials of the respective countries or international organizations – athletes, relatives of residents and people involved in adoption processes are exempt. Other exemptions include special visas for Afghans, US government foreign employees and persecuted minorities in Iran.
The proclamation enters into force on June 9, and visas issued earlier cannot be suspended or revoked. It does not affect refugees or prevent them from seeking asylum under the law.
In a long preamble, Trump argues that already in 2017, during his first term, he restricted the entry of people from several countries: Iraq, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, as well as some specific cases for North Korea and Venezuela. He boasts that the measure was a success – although there is no way to prove it – because it prevented the arrival of potentially dangerous people.
“The United States must ensure that foreigners admitted, and those already in the country, do not exhibit hostile attitudes toward its citizens, culture, government, institutions or founding principles, and that they do not defend, help or support foreign terrorists and other threats to our national security,” he argues.
“The United States must ensure that foreign nationals admitted, and those already in the country, do not exhibit hostile attitudes toward its citizens, culture, government, institutions or founding principles”
Under this principle, he entrusted his officials, as The New York Times reported in March, to prepare a report in 60 days identifying countries that do not provide sufficient information on travelers or maintain inadequate security practices with regard to the issuance of passports and granting of citizenship. “We cannot allow open migration from any country where we can’t conduct a safe and reliable assessment and control,” Trump said in a video statement released this Wednesday at the time of announcing the proclamation.
Included on this blacklist are “citizens of some countries who pose a significant risk of staying in the United States longer than allowed by their visas, which increases the burden on immigration and law enforcement and often aggravates other risks related to national security and public safety.”
In another document dated Wednesday, Trump also suspended visas for students with the “purpose of attending Harvard University or participating in an exchange program sponsored by it.” “This Justice Department will vigorously defend the president’s proclamation that suspends new foreign students from entering Harvard University for reasons of national security,” Attorney General Pam Bondi maintained in a post on X.
The official considered that it is a privilege and not a right to study at the prestigious university, as Trump believes that it does not meet his requirements. In a statement released on Wednesday night and picked up by AP, Harvard states that it “will continue to protect its international students. This is another illegal and retaliatory step by the Government, in violation of the rights guaranteed by the First Amendment,” pointed out university authorities.
As far as the proclamation that affects Cuba is concerned, there is no response at this moment, but bilateral relations are more deteriorated than ever, even on a diplomatic level, after the Cuban government attacked the US chargé d’affaires in Cuba, Mike Hammer, for his meetings and visits to opponents and citizens critical of the island’s regime.
The State Department summoned the Cuban ambassador in Washington, Lianys Torres Rivera, last Friday to express its rejection of this attack against Hammer
On Wednesday, Martí Noticias reported that, according to sources with knowledge, the State Department last Friday summoned the Cuban ambassador in Washington, Lianys Torres Rivera, to express its rejection of this attack on Hammer and other members of the US diplomatic staff. “They can travel all over the country, and our ambassador, too,” they transmitted, allegedly, to the diplomat at the meeting.
The media, based in Miami, could not officially confirm the information, but a spokesman for the State Department said: “We oppose the harassment by the Cuban regime of the Head of Mission, Mike Hammer, and the staff of the US Embassy in Havana for performing normal diplomatic functions as authorized by the Vienna Convention.”
The State Department argued that the Cuban Embassy in Washington holds meetings as it sees fit without any interference from the Administration. “Complaints about the conduct of Ambassador Hammer are not justified. Everything is based on the principle of reciprocity and is fully supported by international norms governing diplomacy,” the State Department added.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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