Effective August 1, 2026, the U.S. Department of State is closing several African Consular posts and moving immigrant and nonimmigrant visa processing to neighboring embassies.

The following African Consular posts will no longer provide visa services: 

• Abuja, Nigeria
• Antananarivo, Madagascar
• Asmara, Eritrea
• Bamako, Mali
• Banjul, The Gambia
• Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo
• Bujumbura, Burundi
• Conakry, Guinea
• Cotonou, Benin
• Durban, South Africa
• Freetown, Sierra Leone
• Gaborone, Botswana
• Harare, Zimbabwe
• Juba, South Sudan
• Libreville, Gabon
• Lilongwe, Malawi
• Lusaka, Zambia
• Maputo, Mozambique
• Maseru, Lesotho
• Mbabane, Eswatini
• N’Djamena, Chad
• Niamey, Niger
• Nouakchott, Mauritania
• Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
• Windhoek, Namibia

Citizens and residents of these countries who wish to apply for a visa on or after August 1, 2026, must schedule an appointment and pay the required visa fee at the appropriate designated Nonimmigrant Visa Locations or designated Immigrant Visa Locations.

There is a strong likelihood that designated posts may shift in the coming months and that visa wait times will increase due to the shift in caseload at certain consular posts.

We will continue to monitor the situation closely. Employers should consult their Pryor Cashman attorney with any questions or concerns.

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Director of Government Affairs Philip Folkemer was a contributing author to this client alert.