Moving to the USA from Venezuela: Travel Ban Rules, Visas and Options in 2026

Venezuela is on the partial restriction list of Proclamation 10998, which took effect on January 1, 2026 and has no end date. Venezuela was already partially restricted under the June 2025 proclamation. For Venezuelan nationals this means:

• Immigrant visas (family and employment green cards processed abroad) are suspended.
• Visitor (B-1, B-2), student (F, M), and exchange (J) visas are suspended.
• Other nonimmigrant visas, such as H-1B, L-1, and O-1, are not suspended, but consular officers are told to reduce how long they are valid.
• USCIS is holding final decisions on many pending applications from nationals of travel-ban countries for extra review.

The exceptions are narrow: green card holders, dual nationals traveling on a passport of a country that is not on the list, certain diplomatic visas, and athletes for major events such as the World Cup. There is no general exception for spouses of US citizens. Venezuela is also on the visa bond list for B-1/B-2 visas (since January 21, 2026), and since August 25, 2026, the State Department has paused immigrant visa interviews at US embassies and consulates worldwide while consular officers are trained on public charge reviews. Scheduled interviews were moved to later dates, and no restart date has been announced as of September 2026. Visitor, student, and temporary work visas are not part of this pause. Details: immigrant visa pause.

TPS. The US government has terminated Temporary Protected Status for Venezuela. Venezuelans who held TPS should check the latest dates and any court orders on the USCIS TPS page and see our TPS terminations page.

CHNV parole. The parole program for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans has ended and no new applications are accepted. See CHNV parole ended.

If you are in the US and your status is ending, talk to a licensed immigration lawyer or accredited representative about asylum, family, or employment options before your permission to stay ends. Avoid "notarios" who promise papers; see notario fraud.

For an overview of every route, see our guide to US immigration and how US immigration works.

US citizens and green card holders can still file I-130 petitions for Venezuelan relatives to secure a priority date for later. Venezuela has no E-1 or E-2 treaty with the US.

Athletes and performers. Professional athletes, including baseball players, often use the P-1 visa, which is not one of the suspended categories, although validity may be reduced.

Venezuelans living in other countries. Many Venezuelans now live in Colombia, Peru, Chile, Spain, or elsewhere. If you hold legal residence there, you can apply at the US embassy in that country, but the ban still applies to your Venezuelan nationality. Holding a second citizenship from a country not on the list (for example Spain or Italy) is different: you may apply with that passport.

Family immigration is the main long-term route for Venezuelans. Venezuelans use rest-of-world dates in the Visa Bulletin, but immigrant visas generally cannot be issued abroad while the partial ban lasts. People already in the US who qualify to adjust status should expect USCIS holds and get legal advice.

Diversity Visa. Venezuelan natives were not eligible for DV-2026 because more than 50,000 Venezuelans immigrated to the US in the previous five years. The Diversity Visa (DV) lottery is paused: visa issuance stopped on December 23, 2025, and DV-2027 registration never opened. See DV lottery paused.

According to the State Department's Venezuela page, operations at the US Embassy in Caracas were suspended on March 11, 2019, and consular services there remain suspended.

Under the partial ban, most immigrant and visitor applications cannot be approved unless an exception applies. Check the US Embassy in Venezuela's website and the Bogota embassy's website for updates.

If you qualify for an exception or are preparing a future case, the State Department's Venezuela page lists:

• Police certificate: a Certificacion de Antecedentes Penales from the Ministry of Interior and Justice, requested online, for people 18 and older with a Venezuelan ID card (cedula).
• Birth certificate: a Partida de Nacimiento from the municipal civil registry or the National Electoral Council (CNE). If it is not available, SAIME's Datos Filiatorios may be used.
• Passports: under a June 2024 Venezuelan decree, passports remain valid for 10 years past their printed expiration date, and the National Visa Center accepts them.

Spanish documents need certified English translations.

The largest Venezuelan community is in South Florida, especially Doral and Weston near Miami, with a large community in Orlando. Other sizeable communities live in Houston in Texas, the New York and New Jersey area, and the Chicago area. Venezuelan community organizations and legal aid groups in these cities run free clinics on TPS and asylum.