US DOS Transitions to Visa-Processing Hubs in Africa
The U.S. State Department (DOS) is consolidating visa processing in Africa beginning in June 2026. They are shifting visa processing from 50 consular posts to 20 designated regional hubs as part of a broader immigration policy to increase scrutiny according to an internal memorandum obtained by the Associated Press.
Routine visa services (work, study, visitor, green card) will be centralized at these hubs. Citizens of non-hub countries must travel to a hub for routine visa processing including visa interviews. Non-hub consulates will remain open but focus on emergency services and passport renewals for US citizens. It is expected that citizens of many African countries will now face increased expenses and processing delays traveling to a new hub for processing.
Citizens from many of these countries are currently subject to a visa processing travel ban which limits/prohibits visa processing. It is unclear at this time if this new centralization will alter the current travel ban in place for more than 30 countries.
Following are the reported 20 new Visa-Processing Hubs that will continue to handle routine immigrant and non-immigrant visa applications in Africa:
- Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire
- Accra, Ghana
- Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
- Cape Town, South Africa
- Dakar, Senegal
- Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
- Djibouti, Djibouti
- Johannesburg, South Africa
- Kampala, Uganda
- Kigali, Rwanda
- Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Lagos, Nigeria
- Lomé, Togo
- Luanda, Angola
- Malabo, Equatorial Guinea
- Monrovia, Liberia
- Nairobi, Kenya
- Port Louis, Mauritius
- Praia, Cape Verde
- Yaoundé, Cameroon
Impacted students and scholars are encouraged to contact their ISSO advisor with questions and to plan ahead, budgeting for travel, and monitoring hub appointment availability to avoid delays.