Commentary

The U.S. Is Now Demanding Up To $15,000 From Travelers of 50 Countries Before They Even Board A Plane

March 20, 2026

In this post Hide

How Does The Visa Bond Work?
Does The Program Really Work?
The Pundit’s Mantra
Credit Card Offers

Disclosure: The Points Pundit receives NO compensation from credit card affiliate partnerships. Support the blog by applying for a card through my personal referral links. This article is meant for information purposes only and doesn’t constitute personal finance, legal, health or investment advice. Please consult a licensed professional for advice pertaining to your situation.

The U.S. State Department is once again expanding its visa bond program. If you hold a passport from one of the newly added countries, you need to be aware of what this means for your next trip to to the U.S. You can read the entire release by the US State Department here.

Effective April 2, passport holders from Cambodia, Ethiopia, Georgia, Grenada, Lesotho, Mauritius, Mongolia, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Seychelles and Tunisia will be required to post a bond of up to $15,000 just to apply for a U.S. visa. That’s twelve more countries added to a list that is growing steadily under the current administration.

After April 2, there will be 50 countries whose citizens are subject to the requirement, which was rolled out by the Trump administration last year as it cracked down on visa overstays.

How Does The Visa Bond Work?

The bond is refunded if your visa application is denied or, if it is granted and you then adhere to the terms of the visa. In other words, if you leave when you’re supposed to leave, you’ll get your money back. If you overstay, then you forfeit the money.

The State Department is expanding its visa bond program to apply to a total of 50 countries on April 2 and will require foreign nationals from these countries to post a bond of $15,000 before receiving B1 or B2 visas for business and tourism in the United States. The bond will be returned to visa recipients who return home in compliance with the terms of the visa and the bond or does not travel.

Under the program, visa applicants from designated countries have to post bonds of $5,000, $10,000 or $15,000 depending on their circumstances and the discretion of the consular officer processing the application. That last part, “discretion of the consular officer” is critical to note. There is no fixed formula here. The officer decides.

Does The Program Really Work?

According to the US State Department, the visa bond program “has already proven effective at drastically reducing the number of visa recipients who overstay their visas,” adding that almost 97% of the nearly 1,000 people who had posted the bond had not overstayed.

A 97% compliance rate is a number the administration is clearly proud of. Whether that success is because the bond deters bad actors, or because it simply prices out lower-income travelers entirely, is a conversation worth having. Critics argue that the high bonds discriminate against low-income travelers, while the Trump administration has defended the policy as a means of reducing visa overstays.

The Pundit’s Mantra

There are a total of 193 UN designated countries worldwide. This list has more than 25% of the countries of the world on it. Critics argue that this is just political posturing. On the other hand, proponents of the program say that its a much needed step to combat visa overstays in the US.

What do you think about this expanded list? Do you think it’s a serious step to prevent visa overstays or just a political gimmick? Tell us in the comments section.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Credit Card Offers

American Express Business Credit Cards

Chase Sapphire Cards

Hilton Honors

Marriott Bonvoy Credit Cards

Delta

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Never miss out on the deals, news and travel industry trends. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram and Twitter to keep getting the latest content!