1

Visa Regimes: A Threat to Migrants’ Access to Safety and Asylum

What is the US strategy of visa regimes?

Visa regimes, or related requirements that aim to stop the arrival of individuals at the southern border of the United States, often impact

all people who migrate, compromising some individuals’ ability to seek protection and preventing them from fleeing countries where

they could be at risk of persecution or human rights violations.

1

Since the beginning of the Biden administration, a number of countries in the region have put into place new visa regimes, many

reportedly due to pressure from or at the request of the US. In a recent Senate hearing, a State Department ocial explained that

the Caribbean who are arriving at the US southern border in greater numbers. In the last year, Mexico alone implemented new visa

requirements for Brazilians, Ecuadorians, and Venezuelans. Costa Rica and Panama also announced new requirements for certain

nationalities. Without the option to obtain a visa to transit safely to Mexico, some migrants may have no choice but to travel along more

dangerous land routes and risk exploitation, perilous conditions, and violence.

Developing and improving measures such as increased access to asylum and refugee status and complementary legal pathways to

migrate and humanitarian assistance along the migrant journey are welcome areas of regional collaboration to ensure the rights of

migrants. However, visa regimes can threaten the ability for individuals to seek protection and serve to externalize US obligations under

domestic and international refugee law.

What visa regimes have been put into place so far during the Biden administration?

In 2021 and 2022, countries such as Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, and Honduras have put into place new visa regimes, including visa

starting in March 2021. The COVID-19 pandemic led to significant inflation and crippling poverty, causing some Brazilians to migrate

north.

In January 2022, Mexico began requiring visas for Venezuelans to reduce migration to the US-Mexico border, citing a more than 1,000

percent increase in irregular transit of Venezuelans to another country when comparing the same period in the previous five years. The

Mexican government reportedly began considering restrictions on Venezuelans in November 2021 at the request of the US government.

Venezuela accounts for the second-largest external displacement crisis in the world, with many Venezuelans fleeing political unrest,

persecution, and struggling to meet basic needs.

1 This explainer will use the term “visa regime,” but “visa restrictions” and “visa requirements” are also used in the media to describe this strategy.

2

Visa Regimes: A Threat to Migrants’ Access to Safety and Asylum

In April 2022, following a rise in the number of Colombians arriving at the US-Mexico border and reportedly due to pressure from the US,

extensive nature. In March 2022, Panama also began requiring Cubans to purchase a transit visa before entering the country, claiming to

ensure security, however, it was perceived by Cubans as another tool to prevent people from fleeing the island.

Visa Regimes, 2021-2022

4

3 Though pre-dating many of the more recent visa regimes described here, in 2018, Chile also instituted a visa requirement for Haitians, following

the election of center-right President Sebastian Pinera.

4 A visa requirement mandates that foreign individuals must apply, and typically receive, this document before arriving to the country. A pre-

registration system allows foreign individuals to register their travel in advance and receive approval before arriving to the country. A transit visa

allows foreign individuals to travel through the country en route to another country. Transit visas and pre-registration systems may have less

onerous processes than applying for a visa, but they still can impose costs and additional bureaucratic challenges to individuals seeking protection

who need to flee immediately.

3

Visa Regimes: A Threat to Migrants’ Access to Safety and Asylum

Visa regimes may impact the number of people from certain countries who are able to travel safely to Mexico and Central America—and

are consequently encountered at the US-Mexico border

5

—but they fail to stop migration, which is a necessity for people fleeing for their

lives and/or aiming to improve their livelihoods. Instead, such requirements can potentially lead people to take far more dangerous

migration routes.

In a State Department briefing, an ocial mentioned that countries were taking steps to “regularize migration” through visa

requirements, but visa regimes, in fact, can do the opposite. The visa regimes described here, many of which were implemented in

response to US pressure to render migration to the US more dicult, may force some people fleeing persecution to take perilous

journeys that expose them to violence and dangerous conditions. For example, some South Americans who are no longer able to fly

directly to Mexico or Central American countries to seek safety there or in the United States might have no choice but to cross the Darien

Visa fees can signify a substantial—and sometimes inaccessible—cost for individuals fleeing persecution. For example, Venezuelans

applying for a visa to Mexico will now reportedly need to prove they have USD $2,500 in their bank accounts to be approved. And even

lower costs or financial requirements may be prohibitive for some individuals. Panama’s new visa requirement for Cubans costs USD $50,

and the average monthly salary in Cuba is USD $50 per month. Some migrants also lack required documentation to obtain a visa and

may not have time to apply before they flee from their homes due to imminent danger. In addition, there may be additional challenges,

such as the visa approval process being subjected to the arbitrary whims of consular ocers.

5 Following Mexico’s visa requirement, the number of times Ecuadorians were encountered at the US-Mexico border dropped over 95 percent,

from more than 17,500 in August 2021 to less than 1,000 in October 2021. In January 2022, a month after Mexico instituted its new visa

requirement for Brazilians, the number of times Brazilians encountered at the US southern border dropped to 2,766, a 65 percent decrease from

the prior month. Following the visa restriction, from January to February 2022, the number of times Venezuelans were encountered at the US-

Mexico border dropped 86 percent. However, there may be other factors contributing to these decreases. Individuals of these nationalities may

divert their routes.

4

Visa Regimes: A Threat to Migrants’ Access to Safety and Asylum

Recommendations for migration and protection in the region

Black, LGBTQI+, Indigenous, women, children, and disabled individuals), protect against refoulement, and ensure that all individuals can

safely migrate and fairly access protection.

The Women’s Refugee Commission encourages the United States and other governments in the region to move forward with

protection-centered solutions as part of any larger migration management strategy, instead of misguided enforcement-based or

deterrence-oriented strategies, such as visa regimes that undermine protection and do not ultimately stop migration. Following the June

2022 Summit of the Americas, the US and regional governments should put into place consultative mechanisms that include diverse

stakeholders, including civil society organizations and impacted communities, to ensure the meaningful implementation of protection-

based solutions.