Reason US President Trump Revoked all South Sudanese Visas Emerges
US

Reason US President Trump Revoked all South Sudanese Visas Emerges

  • The United States government has revoked existing visas issued to all South Sudanese passport holders
  • The reason President Donald Trump's government revoked all visas issued to South Sudanese has emerged
  • The Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau explained the reason in a more detailed statement

Legit.ng journalist, Adekunle Dada has over 7 years of experience covering metro, government policy, and international issues

Washington, DC, United States - The reason President Donald Trump-led United States government revoked existing visas issued to all South Sudanese passport holders emerged.

The US government also barred further entries of South Sudanese nationals due to a failed deportation case.

Why President Donald Trump revoked all South Sudanese visas
The US revokes visas for South Sudanese passport holders due to refusal to accept repatriated citizen. Photo credit: Chip Somodevilla
Source: Getty Images

The US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, blamed the transitional government of South Sudan for a lack of “full cooperation”.

Rubio also accused South Sudan of “taking advantage” of the United States government.

According to Al Jazeera, Rubio stated this in a statement issued on Saturday, April 5, 2025.

Read also

Man originally from Congo deported to another location as US revokes visas of African country

The statement is the first such blanket sanction on any country since President Donald Trump took office in January.

It signals an escalation of the Trump administration’s sweeping crackdown on immigration.

What US accuses South Sudan of?

Rubio hinted that South Sudan’s government refused to take back citizens who had been deported from the US.

“Every country must accept the return of its citizens in a timely manner when another country, including the United States, seeks to remove them,”

Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau alleged that South Sudan refused to take back one of its presumed citizens because officials there had determined him to be Congolese after he arrived in Juba.

Landau claimed that the South Sudanese embassy in Washington, DC, verified the individual as a citizen on February 13, 2925.

According to Landau, the South Sudanese embassy issued an emergency travel letter that the US relied on to send the deportee on a flight to Juba.

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Trump cancels visas of many people accepted to live in US under Biden-era, over 900,000 may be affected

However, upon arrival there, South Sudanese officials determined that he was not actually from the country and returned him to the US.

“Obviously, at that point, it is unacceptable and irresponsible for South Sudanese government officials to second guess the determination of their own Embassy – as far as we’re concerned, the Embassy’s certification is conclusive, and the matter is closed.”

Legit.ng earlier reported that the U.S. Department of State reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring visa holders comply with all U.S. laws and immigration regulations in a Facebook post on March 17, 2025.

The statement emphasised that visa screening does not end once a visa is issued, as the department continuously monitors visa holders to ensure adherence to legal and immigration requirements.

The post warned that non-compliance could result in visa revocation and deportation.

Immigration experts react as US revokes visa of South Sudanese

Read also

Trump: Immigration experts react as US revokes visas of African country

Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that US-based immigration lawyers have weighed in critically on the US visa revocation decision for South Sudanese nationals, citing humanitarian concerns.

Speaking with Legit.ng, they cited humanitarian and deportation concerns over the revocation of the Temporary Protected Status of the nationals.

While suggesting the decision could be politically motivated, the potential impact on South Sudanese students was also explored.

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Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
Adekunle Dada avatar

Adekunle Dada (Politics and Current Affairs Editor) Adekunle Dada is a trained journalist with over 8 years of working experience. He is also a Politics/Current Affairs Editor at Legit.ng. He holds a B.Sc. in Mass Communication from Lagos State University, Ojo. Adekunle previously worked at PM News, The Sun, and Within Nigeria, where he expressed his journalistic skills with well-researched articles and features. In 2024, Adekunle obtained a certificate in advanced digital reporting from the Google News Initiative. He can be reached via adekunle.dada@corp.legit.ng.