US revokes all visas for South Sudanese nationals amid deportation concerns

In an unprecedented move, Washington has decided to revoke all existing visas for South Sudanese passport holders while also preventing the issuance of new visas. This decision, announced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, stems from frustrations regarding South Sudan's lack of cooperation in accepting its citizens who have been expelled from the United States. Rubio emphasized that it is the responsibility of every nation to repatriate their citizens when a country seeks to deport them. This action stands out as the first instance of targeting a particular country's passport holders since the Trump administration returned to the White House on January 20, 2021. South Sudan, recognized as the world's newest country and one of its poorest, presently faces considerable internal strife, raising concerns about a potential resurgence of civil war—a conflict that previously resulted in approximately 400,000 casualties from 2013 to 2018. Moreover, the ongoing political tensions and socio-economic instability have created dire circumstances that challenge the government's capacity to accept deportees. The Trump administration has been progressively reversing Temporary Protected Status (TPS) policies that have provided a safety net for foreign nationals unable to return home due to dangerous conditions. Under the previous administration, South Sudanese nationals residing in the U.S. were granted TPS, shielding them from deportation until May 3, 2025. As of September 2023, around 133 South Sudanese individuals were under this protection, with another 140 eligible to apply. However, the Trump administration's broader strategy has been to dismantle protective statuses across various nationalities, having already revoked protections for over 600,000 Venezuelans in January 2025, only to see a federal judge halt these deportation actions amidst concerns about the characterization of Venezuelans as criminals. The intensification of measures targeting South Sudanese citizens correlates with an observable rise in African migration attempts via the southern U.S. border, likely as individuals seek safer pathways to the U.S. than those perilous routes leading to Europe. While the announcement of revoked visas serves as a significant policy shift, it reflects the underlying complexities surrounding immigration and the United States' approach toward countries that fail to cooperate in the repatriation of their citizens. As the situation unfolds, U.S. officials have indicated that they may reconsider these visa revocations if the South Sudanese government begins to accept its expelled nationals promptly.