Washington/Freetown 2nd June 2026 — The United States is preparing to drastically reduce the number of embassies and consulates in Africa authorized to process visas, according to an internal State Department memo and officials cited by the Associated Press (AP).
Nearly 50 U.S. missions across the continent currently handle visa applications. That number will be cut to just 20 “hub” embassies and consulates in the coming weeks, AP reported, citing three officials familiar with the plan. The change is expected to take effect in June, though no firm date has been set.
The move is part of the Trump administration’s broader effort to tighten immigration controls, including restrictions on temporary visas and reductions in consular staffing worldwide. On a recent conference call, U.S. diplomats and consular chiefs were informed of the scale‑back, AP said.
Under a directive approved by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, consular operations will be consolidated into 20 hubs. Citizens of non‑hub countries will have to travel to one of these designated sites to apply for visas a shift that could impose significant travel costs and logistical challenges.
Consular sections in non‑hub countries will remain open but limited to services for American citizens, emergency requests, diplomatic visas, and special national interest cases.
Visa processing in Africa has already been affected by a U.S. travel ban on certain countries, a requirement for applicants to post bonds of up to $15,000, and restrictions linked to the Ebola outbreak.
The State Department did not directly address the memo’s details but said it “is constantly evaluating its overseas operations in order to deploy taxpayer resources in a way that advances America’s priorities as efficiently and effectively as possible.”
According to AP, the embassies and consulates that will continue full visa processing are located in: Abidjan (Ivory Coast), 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 (Congo), Lagos (Nigeria), Lome (Togo), Luanda (Angola), Malabo (Equatorial Guinea), Monrovia (Liberia), Nairobi (Kenya), Port Louis (Mauritius), Praia (Cape Verde), and Yaounde (Cameroon).
Sources at the Embassy in Freetown say they haven’t been informed yet officially and their operations continue
