It should be recalled that the U.S. State Department has designated Nassau as the processing site for Haitian visa applications, while regular visa services in Port-au-Prince remain suspended due to insecurity https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-45699-haiti-flash-us-visa-applications-for-haitians-transferred-to-the-bahamas.html . Following this decision, the Office of Bahamian Prime Minister Philip Davis announced on Friday, September 5, that no Haitians would be allowed to enter the Bahamas for this purpose https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-45716-haiti-flash-us-visas-in-the-bahamas-turnaround.html , recalling that Haitian nationals already require a Bahamian visa and that entry rules were under review, with further tightening planned.

The U.S. Embassy stated that designating Nassau to process Haitian visa applications does not affect who is authorized to enter the Bahamas. "We completely defer to the government of The Bahamas on making the decision about who to allow into the country," Carina Canaan, head of the consular section, said on Guardian Radio's Morning Blend program. "We understand that it is a national security calculus, and we defer to them. We will deal with the reality, and we’ll give information to Washington based on the reality, but we defer to them."

The United States suspended the issuance of new visas to Haitian nationals on June 9, citing security concerns and overstay rates. https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-45056-haiti-flash-trump-bans-haitians-from-entering-the-usa.html . This suspension primarily affects nonimmigrant categories, such as visitor and student visas, with limited exceptions for certain immigrant visas, including family reunification.

Ms. Canaan clarified, "Haitians who had valid visas and were outside the US as of June 9 are still able to travel to the US. That decision is made at the discretion of our Customs and Border Protection officials," adding, "There’s not a total ban on entry of Haitian nationals to the US. It’s a suspension of issuing new visas, with the exception of certain immigrant visa categories."

Ms. Canaan reiterated that the U.S. Embassy's priority remains ensuring appointment availability for Bahamians and Bahamian residents, adding that expedited applications could be accommodated, and non-resident third-country nationals could apply subject to limited availability.

See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-45716-haiti-flash-us-visas-in-the-bahamas-turnaround.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-45699-haiti-flash-us-visa-applications-for-haitians-transferred-to-the-bahamas.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-45056-haiti-flash-trump-bans-haitians-from-entering-the-usa.html

S/ HaitiLibre