Trump to halt migration from 3rd world nations: Which countries are likely to be hit?

In a significant shift in immigration policy, US President Trump announced a 'permanent pause' on migration from designated 'Third World' countries.

US President Donald Trump on Thursday declared that he will “permanently pause migration from all Third World countries”, following the shooting of two National Guard service members in Washington by an Afghan national.

Trump’s declaration vowed not only to halt future migration but also to reassess millions of immigration admissions issued under the previous Biden administration, according to a report by the AFP. He said his plan would include deporting non-citizens who, in his words, fail to contribute or pose security concerns, and cutting off federal benefits for all non-US citizens.

The comments are being seen as a dramatic intensification of the president’s second-term agenda, which has increasingly focused on mass removals and sharply restricted entry into the United States. Trump framed the move as necessary, and said, “Only REVERSE MIGRATION can fully cure this situation.”

USCIS launches full review of green cards from 19 ‘countries of concern’

Meanwhile, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued new policy guidance ordering a comprehensive re-examination of every Green Card belonging to individuals from nations classified as “high-risk”. This comes after the attack by an Afghan national that killed US Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and US Air Force Staff Sgt Andrew Wolfe, 24, in Washington DC on Wednesday.

USCIS Director Joseph Edlow said the new directive is already in effect and will apply to all pending and future requests filed from November 27, 2025, onward, according to a report by news agency PTI. He added that “country-specific negative indicators” will now be used during security vetting.

The 19 countries designated under the updated scrutiny list are: Afghanistan, Myanmar, Burundi, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, and Yemen.

These same nations were included in a travel restriction order Trump issued earlier this year targeting perceived security threats.

What does ‘Third World’ mean in today’s context?

The term “third world” is often used in politics, but it doesn’t actually exist in US immigration policy. It originally came from the Cold War era, referring to countries that were not aligned with either the US or the Soviet Union.

Over time, people started using it, often incorrectly, to describe poorer or developing countries. Many of the 19 nations on the administration’s list fall into one of these three categories: low or middle-income countries, countries facing conflict or instability, and countries that require extra security checks.

(With inputs from AFP and PTI)