Why the US has imposed visa limits on some South Africans - TimesLIVE
The US has imposed visa restrictions on foreign nationals it holds responsible for — or says are complicit in — South African laws and policies it says enable race-based discrimination, uncompensated land seizures and the incitement of violence against minority groups.
The move follows concerns raised in US President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 14204, “Addressing Egregious Actions of the Republic of South Africa”. The order said the US was “gravely concerned” about what it described as racially motivated crime and government-sponsored discrimination against Afrikaners and other minority groups, citing race-based legislation, threats of land expropriation without compensation and the incitement of racial violence through “dehumanising chants and slogans”.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio said the South African government had failed to adequately address the concerns.
The restrictions will be imposed under the US Immigration and Nationality Act, which allows the secretary of state to declare a foreign national inadmissible if their entry could have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the US. Certain family members may also be covered.
“The US will not allow such behaviour to go unchecked,” Rubio said.
“These actions directly undermine peace, economic stability and the rule of law, and they are incompatible with the pillars of America’s foreign policy.”
The US embassy in South Africa warned the visa restrictions were the first step in a broader escalation.
“As has been made absolutely clear, the time for endless ‘dialogue’ has run its course. No more. America has just so much patience,” the embassy said in a statement posted on social media.
“We want strong and lasting relations with the South African government. It needs to show it wants the same. So far it has shown it cares for neither.”
The embassy said the consequences would be “necessarily” severe and the visa restrictions were “only the first step in a series of escalatory measures” intended to demonstrate US resolve.
Neither Rubio nor the embassy identified the individuals who could be affected.
The restrictions do not amount to a blanket visa ban on South African nationals. Instead, they target foreign nationals who the US considers responsible for, or complicit in, the enactment or implementation of the specified laws and policies.
Trump’s February 2025 executive order focused heavily on the Expropriation Act, which he said could result in Afrikaner farmers having their land seized without compensation.
The order also directed US agencies to halt foreign assistance to South Africa, subject to applicable law, and called for the US to prioritise Afrikaner refugees for resettlement.
Trump also cited South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice and its relations with Iran as concerns for US foreign policy.
The latest measures focus on South Africa’s domestic policies and introduce individual visa restrictions as a consequence.
The South African government has rejected the Trump administration’s characterisation of its land reform policies and allegations of systematic persecution of Afrikaners. It has maintained land reform seeks to address the country’s historic racial inequality in land ownership and that the Expropriation Act does not permit arbitrary seizure of property.
The announcement comes amid strained relations between Washington and Pretoria after Trump’s decision to freeze most US aid to South Africa in 2025.
The US has not yet provided a list of individuals who will be subjected to the restrictions or indicated how many people could be affected.
