US announces fresh global visa ban; new restrictions also target family members: 'We will go after those who...'

The United States has introduced a new global visa restriction policy targeting individuals involved in cyberscams, sextortion, and other cyber-enabled crimes, with the scope broad enough to also cover immediate family members of those engaged in such activities.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the policy on July 23, describing it as part of a wider effort to dismantle transnational criminal networks that target American citizens online. "The United States will go after those who prey on our citizens," Rubio said, adding that the administration would use every available legal and diplomatic tool to disrupt international scam networks.

What the policy covers

The restrictions are being implemented under Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the US Immigration and Nationality Act, which allows the government to deny visas when an individual's entry could have adverse foreign policy consequences. Under the new policy, foreign nationals who are responsible for or complicit in cyberscams, online investment fraud, sextortion, and other cyber-enabled criminal activities will be ineligible for US visas. Immediate family members of individuals engaged in these activities may also face restrictions.

The policy does not identify specific countries or individuals as targets; it is described as global in scope.

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Why now

The State Department said the move follows President Trump's Executive Order 14390 on combating cybercrime, fraud, and predatory schemes targeting American citizens.

Rubio said online investment scams, which he described as often orchestrated by Chinese transnational criminal organisations, defrauded US citizens of at least $10 billion in 2024. Beyond financial losses, he linked these operations to money laundering, corruption, and human trafficking. The administration also highlighted a rising trend of sextortion cases targeting American children, describing overseas-based perpetrators as having caused severe harm to victims and their families.

How enforcement will work

Visa restrictions are framed as only one component of the broader campaign. The administration said it will also deploy economic sanctions, criminal prosecutions, asset seizures, extradition requests, and international law enforcement cooperation to dismantle cybercrime networks and impose costs on those who facilitate them.

The wider context

The cybercrime announcement follows a separate visa restriction policy introduced just a week earlier, on July 16, targeting members of what the State Department described as "far-left terrorist and other aligned groups." That policy, announced under National Security Presidential Memorandum-7, targets foreign nationals accused of supporting or inciting terrorism, participating in violent criminal activity, financing or recruiting for violent groups, and facilitating cooperation among extremist networks.