The United States has implemented targeted visa restrictions on South African officials accused of enabling race-based discrimination, land seizures without compensation and inciting violence against minority groups.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the standard under Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, permitting Washington to declare specific foreign nationals inadmissible if their entry harms American foreign policy interests.
Scope of the new US visa penalties
The measures target individuals and immediate family members tied to policies like the Expropriation Act and Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE), as well as political figures promoting hostile rhetoric.
While the State Department has not publicly named specific individuals, officials noted the restriction applies to those actively enacting or enforcing laws that Washington views as detrimental to minority populations, particularly Afrikaners.
Escalating diplomatic friction between Washington and Pretoria
This policy represents the latest sharp escalation in strained US-South Africa relations. Washington previously suspended financial aid, levied 30 percent tariffs on South African goods and offered refugee status to Afrikaners.
Pretoria has firmly rejected claims of systematic minority persecution, defending its economic and land reform programs as constitutional measures designed to correct historic economic disparities from the apartheid era.
Rubio warned that further actions could follow if Pretoria does not alter its positions.
