US Imposes Up to $15,000 Visa Bonds for Zambian Visitors

The United States has announced that starting August 20, 2025, citizens of Malawi and Zambia applying for B-1 business or B-2 tourist visas will be required to post refundable bonds of $5,000, $10,000, or $15,000 as part of a new travel restriction.

The measure, part of a 12-month pilot program, is aimed at curbing visa overstays. However, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) data shows that neither Zambia nor Malawi is among the worst offenders. Colombia, Spain, and Haiti have higher overstay rates for business and tourist visas.

According to a Department of State circular, applicants “must also complete and submit a Department of Homeland Security Form I-352, agreeing to the bond’s terms”, and will be required to arrive and depart through only three airports, including Boston Logan, Washington Dulles, and New York JFK airports.

Critics have condemned the policy. “This is not about national security, it’s about weaponising immigration policy to extort vulnerable visitors,” said Robert S. McCaw, Government Affairs 

Director at the Council on American-Islamic Relations. “Demanding thousands of dollars from tourists and business travellers before they even set foot in the US is not a security strategy; it’s a legalised shakedown.”

The bond requirement follows broader Trump-era visa restrictions, including a June 2025 ban on travellers from 12 nations.