US travel ban draft shows Pakistan in Orange List: What does it mean?

The Trump administration is reportedly considering a broader travel ban targeting citizens from as many as 43 countries, significantly expanding the restrictions imposed during Trump’s first term, according to officials familiar with the matter.

According to a draft list reported seen by New York Times, a draft list of recommendations, developed by diplomatic and security officials, categorizes the countries into two groups.

The “red list”, comprising 11 countries, would face a complete travel ban, barring their citizens from entering the United States. These nations include:

Afghanistan

Bhutan

Cuba

Iran

Libya

North Korea

Somalia

Sudan

Syria

Venezuela

Yemen

Officials caution that the State Department formulated this list weeks ago, and modifications are possible before it reaches the White House. Various U.S. embassies, security agencies, and intelligence officials are currently reviewing the draft to assess its accuracy and policy implications.

Read more: Pakistanis, Afghans to face US travel ban under Trump’s order

Additionally, an “orange list” of 10 countries has been proposed, for which travel would be restricted but not entirely cut off. In these cases, affluent business travelers might still be permitted entry, but immigrant and tourist visas would face tighter scrutiny.

Furthermore, all applicants from these countries would be required to attend in-person visa interviews. The countries on this list include:

Belarus

Eritrea

Haiti

Laos

Myanmar

Pakistan

Russia

Sierra Leone

South Sudan

Turkmenistan

The Yellow List includes 22 countries that would be given 60 days to resolve perceived deficiencies. If these remain unaddressed these, countries in this list could be moved to either of the two above buckets.

Angola

Antigua and Barbuda

Benin

Burkina Faso

Cambodia

Cameroon

Cape Verde Chad

The Republic of Congo,

The Democratic Republic of Congo

Dominica

Equatorial Guinea

Gambia

Liberia

Malawi

Mali

Mauritania

St. Kitts and Nevis

St. Lucia

São Tomé and Príncipe

Vanuatu

Zimbabwe.

The move follows Trump’s January 20 executive order, which directed the State Department to identify nations with inadequate vetting and screening processes that could warrant partial or full travel suspensions.