Cotonou: IR5 visas issued

Since August 1, 2026, the State Department has moved routine visa services at this post, including immigrant visas, to regional hubs: embassies and consulates in Africa that handle visas for nearby countries. Citizens and residents of this country apply at the immigrant visa post that the State Department names for it.

Source: State Department: Realignment of U.S. Visa Services in Africa to Regional Hubs.

Last checked Sep 25, 2026.

Presidential Proclamation 10998 has suspended visas since January 1, 2026, with narrow exceptions. It depends on your nationality, not on the embassy.

All visas are suspended for nationals of Afghanistan, Burma, Burkina Faso, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Mali, Niger, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria and Yemen, and for anyone traveling on travel documents issued or endorsed by the Palestinian Authority.

All immigrant visas, and B-1/B-2, F, M and J visas, are suspended for nationals of Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burundi, Cote d'Ivoire, Cuba, Dominica, Gabon, The Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Venezuela, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

All immigrant visas are suspended for nationals of Turkmenistan.

Spouses, children and parents of U.S. citizens, and Afghan special immigrants, are no longer exempt. You can still apply and be scheduled for an interview, but the State Department says you may not be eligible for a visa. People with two nationalities who apply with the passport of a country not on these lists are exempt.

Source: State Department: Suspension of Visa Issuance to Foreign Nationals to Protect the Security of the United States.

Last checked Sep 25, 2026.

In August 2026, U.S. embassies and consulates reportedly postponed immigrant visa interviews while their consular officers were trained on new public charge guidance: rules on whether an applicant is likely to depend on public benefits. They emailed applicants with interviews booked that the interviews would be rescheduled. The State Department acknowledged the pause in a statement on August 25, but it has posted no notice about it on its website.

On August 26, a State Department statement quoted by Fox News said its training initiative started in early August. On August 27, the Associated Press quoted a State Department official saying that the pause began in early August and was not expected to last beyond early to mid-September. The official said the interviews affected, most of them scheduled for August, would be rescheduled for September, October and November.

The latest report we have found, from Reuters on September 8, said that processing had started again for Hungary and Poland while the pause continued elsewhere, and that it could last months, according to a person familiar with the matter. Reuters also said that the pause came after the August 21 court ruling against the 75-country pause, and that the government told a court interviews were rescheduled through August 31. We have found no report on whether the pause is still in effect.

If your interview was postponed, or is coming up, check your email and the embassy's website: NVC and embassies may reschedule interviews, including ones already booked.

Sources: Fox News: Trump admin pauses visa appointments worldwide amid heightened screening for applicants (August 26, 2026); Associated Press, via NBC News: Trump administration pauses all immigrant visa applications amid new screening policy (August 27, 2026); Ogletree: State Department Pauses Immigrant Visa Interviews for New Public Charge Guidance Training (August 31, 2026); Reuters, via Yahoo News: US resumes immigrant visa processing for Hungary, Poland as pause remains elsewhere (September 8, 2026).

Last checked Sep 25, 2026.