Congress bans entry for nationals of 40 countries with minimal due process

What it does

This bill prohibits nationals of 40 named countries—including Afghanistan, Iran, Syria, Venezuela, Haiti, and most sub-Saharan African nations—from entering the United States, with narrow exceptions for dual nationals, athletes at major sporting events, and those with critical national-interest waivers. The Secretary of Homeland Security may grant case-by-case waivers at his discretion, and the State Department must report every 180 days on whether the ban should continue.

Why we flagged it

The bill's core mechanism is a categorical entry prohibition on nationals of 40 named countries, with discretionary executive waivers. It is functionally a travel ban, not a security vetting reform or procedural clarification.

What the text implies

• The bill applies only to aliens outside the US without valid visas on enactment, creating a temporal cliff that may incentivize rushed visa applications before passage and creates legal uncertainty for pending cases.
• The discretionary waiver power granted to the Secretary of Homeland Security is nearly unlimited ('critical national interest' is undefined), effectively delegating legislative authority to the executive and removing judicial review opportunities.
• The list of 40 countries is geographically and politically heterogeneous (mixing failed states, authoritarian regimes, and stable democracies like Senegal and Tanzania), suggesting the selection criteria are opaque and potentially subject to political manipulation.
• Dual nationals of a prohibited country and a non-prohibited country are exempted, creating incentive structures for individuals to obtain second passports and potentially undermining the stated security rationale.
• The bill does not address visa holders already in the US or those with pending applications, creating ambiguity about retroactive application and potential constitutional challenges on due-process grounds.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

The bill restricts the rights of foreign nationals to seek entry and asylum, narrowing pathways for refugees, family reunification, and humanitarian immigration from designated countries. While immigration restrictions are within Congress's authority, this blanket ban on 40 countries—many experiencing humanitarian crises—eliminates due-process review for individuals and shifts discretionary power entirely to executive officials, reducing transparency and accountability in immigration decisions.

Named in the bill

Secretary of Homeland Security, Secretary of State, Attorney General, Director of National Intelligence, House Committee on the Judiciary, Immigration and Nationality Act, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

Where it stands

• Jul 15, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• Jul 15, 2026 — Referred to House Committee on the Judiciary · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

4 lobbying clients named this bill on 4 disclosure filings across 1 quarter, Jun 2026 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $1,002,500 in lobbying spend. A filing names 5 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 72% of bills with at least one filing.

Nancy Mace, the sponsor, reported $8,000 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• Union Pacific Corporation — $930,000 on 1 filing
• Holland & Knight Llp (on Behalf of the City of Phoenix, Az) — $40,000 on 1 filing
• Alaska Airlines, Inc. — $22,500 on 1 filing
• Presbyterian Villages of Michigan — $10,000 on 1 filing

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.