The United States Mission has said Nigeria is not included in the US’ pilot visa bond programme .
The US Mission in Nigeria made this known in a statement on its website on Tuesday .
The outgoing administration of US President Donald Trump had issued a new temporary rule for African tourists.
The new rule could require tourist and business travellers from some countries, most in Africa , to pay a bond of as much as $15, 000 to visit the United States .
The US State Department said the temporary final rule , which takes effect December 24 and runs through June 24, targets countries whose nationals have higher rates of overstaying B- 2 visas for tourists and B- 1 visas for business travelers.

The statement read , “ In response to the April 2019 Presidential Memorandum on Combating High Nonimmigrant Overstay Rates, the Department and our embassies and consulates overseas conducted an in - depth analysis to identify and address root causes of overstays.

“ Among other efforts to address this challenge , the State Department is considering additional steps to address overstays, including piloting a limited visa bonds program to test , in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security , the operational feasibility of posting, processing , and discharging visa bonds as means to ensure the timely departure from the United States of certain travelers.
“ Accordingly , the State Department will begin a limited six - month visa bond pilot program beginning on December 24, 2020.
“ We are committed to combating visa overstays and making sure travelers to the United States respect our laws .
“ The implementation of this pilot builds on our engagement with foreign governments in recent years and will ensure continued progress to reduce overstay rates . Nigeria is not included in this six months pilot program. ”

source: https://punchng.com/nigeria-not-included-in-15000-visa-bond-pilot-us-mission/

Good one