U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced a new visa restriction policy Wednesday that will crack down on foreign government officials and others aiding illegal immigration into the United States.
The policy applies to all individuals believed to be responsible for knowingly facilitating the mass migration of illegal aliens into the U.S. Those subject to the policy include immigration and customs officials as well as airport and port authority personnel who fail to enforce immigration law or implement practices that facilitate the transport of foreign nationals intending to illegally cross over via the U.S. southwest border.
Countries along migratory routes must do their part to prevent and deter the transit of illegal aliens. @StateDept has instituted a new visa restriction policy for foreign government officials responsible for facilitating the transit of illegal aliens into the United States.…
— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) March 5, 2025
"Securing our nation's borders is critically important to making America safer, stronger, and more prosperous," Rubio said in a statement. "Countries along migratory routes must do their part to prevent and deter the transit of aliens seeking to illegally enter the United States."
This policy is pursuant to Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which authorizes the U.S. secretary of state to "render inadmissible" any alien whose entry into the United States "would have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States." Certain family members may also be covered by these restrictions.
The latest measure complements an existing 3C policy, expanded in 2024, pertaining to private sector actors who provide transportation and travel services designed primarily for illegal aliens traveling to the United States.
"These measures will continue until those officials take responsibility for ensuring there are policies in place and existing laws are enforced to prevent the transit of such individuals," Rubio said. "America will not back down when it comes to defending our national security interests."
Under the Trump administration, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. State Department are focusing on visa reform, specifically relating to countries hostile to American interests.
Within moments of returning to the White House, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing Rubio to "[e]valuate all visa programs to ensure that they are not used by foreign nation-states or other hostile actors to harm the security, economic, political, cultural, or other national interests of the United States."
"To protect Americans, the United States must be vigilant during the visa-issuance process to ensure that those aliens approved for admission into the United States do not intend to harm Americans or our national interests," Trump's directive says. "More importantly, the United States must identify them before their admission or entry into the United States."
During his Senate confirmation hearing, Rubio suggested that the U.S. should revoke the visas of Hamas supporters and other pro-terrorist visa holders.
"If you apply for a visa to come into the United States and in the process of being looked at, it comes to light you're a supporter of Hamas, we wouldn't let you in," Rubio said. "Now that you got the visa and [are] inside the U.S. and we realize you're a supporter, we should remove your visa. If you could not come in because you're a supporter of Hamas, you should not be able to stay. That's how I view it." Rubio added that he intends to be "very forceful" on this issue.
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