Business Immigration Insights

Effective today, August 3, 2026, the U.S. Department of State’s 12-month Visa Bond Pilot Program becomes permanent, as widely expected.  The list of nations subject to the requirement still stands at 50, but the final rule allows DOS to add countries with 15 days’ notice or remove countries with immediate effect.

During the 12-month pilot program, as we reported on February 2 and March 23, any individual from a list of 50 countries who applied for a first-time or renewed visa as a Business Visitor (B‑1) or Tourist (B-2) was required to pay a cash bond of $5,000 to $15,000, depending on degree of overstay risk perceived by the officer who interviewed them at the U.S. consulate.  These pilot program travelers also received specially annotated visas valid for only a single entry and, at admission, were required to use specific airports and were granted a maximum stay of only 30 days – significantly less than the normal B-2 admission period of 180 days.

The permanent program contains the following key differences from the pilot program:

1. Bond amount increases to $10,000 - $20,000, with $15,000 as “expected” default amount.
2. Visas to be issued as: (a) 3-month single-entry; (b) 3-month multiple-entry; or (c) up-to-12-month multiple entry depending on reciprocity tables.
3. Admission limit of 30 days expands to normal B-1/B-2 admission periods at discretion of U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
4. Allows U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to treat existence of bond as a negative discretionary factor in adjudicating a timely-filed change-of-status (COS) or extension-of-status (EOS) application.
5. Sets 10-day departure period after COS/EOS denial to protect bond.
6. Makes bond forfeiture mandatory for filing an I-589 application for asylum, withholding or Convention Against Torture protection, regardless of the merits of the claim.
7. Allows admission at any commercial airport, including preclearance locations, but prohibits use of land or sea ports of entry.

Importantly, the rule also notes that although DOS has statutory authority to require bonds from both B-1/B-2 visitors and F-1 students, the program is limited to B visa applicants because – as of the date the rule becomes final – F-1 students are not admitted with fixed expiration dates but instead for “duration of status” to accommodate normal program changes over a student’s academic career.

On July 17, 2026, the Department of Homeland Security announced a final rule ending “duration of status” admissions and setting fixed departure dates for F-1 students.  It is likely DOS will add F-1 visa applicants from the listed countries to the Visa Bond Program soon after the rule is effective, which is on September 15, 2026.

Of additional interest is DOS’s report that 20,000 bond-subject applications were filed during the 12-month project when only 10 percent of that number were anticipated; that nearly half of the 20,000 did not proceed with bond payments; and that issuance of B visas fell by 83 percent during the first 10 months in the listed countries.  The permanent rule expressly anticipates ongoing reduced demand for visitor’s visas in those countries.