{"id":7027,"date":"2026-01-08T14:46:49","date_gmt":"2026-01-08T14:46:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/?p=7027"},"modified":"2026-01-08T14:46:49","modified_gmt":"2026-01-08T14:46:49","slug":"us-visa-bond-unfortunate-but-not-unusual-says-bangladesh-foreign-affairs-adviser","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/?p=7027","title":{"rendered":"US visa bond \u2018unfortunate but not unusual,\u2019 says Bangladesh foreign affairs adviser"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bangladesh\u2019s foreign affairs adviser <strong>Md. Touhid Hossain<\/strong> said the United States\u2019 decision to require a refundable <strong>visa bond of up to $15,000<\/strong> from applicants of certain countries is \u201cregrettable but not unusual,\u201d noting that the measure applies to <strong>38 countries<\/strong> and is linked to U.S. concerns over <strong>irregular migration<\/strong> and overstays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Speaking to reporters at the Foreign Ministry on Thursday, Hossain stressed the policy is <strong>not targeted solely at Bangladesh<\/strong> and has evolved over years. \u201cIf restrictions are imposed on several countries and Bangladesh is among them, it is painful but not unexpected,\u201d he said, adding that responsibility for migration patterns spans <strong>successive governments<\/strong> and cannot be reversed \u201cby one government alone.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hossain said the <strong>interim government opposes irregular migration<\/strong> and will continue to discourage risky journeys that have led to deaths in routes such as the <strong>Mediterranean<\/strong>. He cited cases of travelers using tourist visas to third countries as part of onward irregular travel, arguing that curbing such practices is essential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On next steps, the adviser said Dhaka will pursue relief <strong>through diplomatic channels<\/strong>, aiming for Bangladesh\u2019s removal from the bond regime. \u201cWe will proceed in the customary diplomatic way and try to secure an exemption,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to the U.S. announcement earlier this week, the bond requirement\u2014<strong>$5,000, $10,000, or $15,000<\/strong> at a consular officer\u2019s discretion\u2014can apply to <strong>non-immigrant B1\/B2 applicants<\/strong> from listed countries, with <strong>most effective Jan 21, 2026<\/strong>. The bond is paid via the U.S. Treasury\u2019s <strong>Pay.gov<\/strong> and is <strong>refundable<\/strong> if a visa is refused or the holder complies fully with visa terms. The State Department has also reiterated <strong>in-person interviews<\/strong> and expanded background disclosures as part of broader screening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The updated roster includes countries across <strong>Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Pacific<\/strong>, among them <strong>Bangladesh, Algeria, Angola, Cuba, Fiji, Kyrgyzstan, Nepal, Nigeria, Senegal, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Venezuela<\/strong> and <strong>Zimbabwe<\/strong> (with some nations\u2019 start dates earlier than Jan 21). Hossain noted a similar bond proposal in the <strong>UK in 2013<\/strong> was later shelved, underscoring that such measures are not without precedent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cStopping irregular migration is the only durable solution,\u201d Hossain said, while emphasizing <strong>sympathy for victims<\/strong> of trafficking and dangerous journeys and a commitment to pursue lawful, orderly mobility.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Bangladesh\u2019s foreign affairs adviser Md. Touhid Hossain said the United States\u2019 decision to require a refundable visa bond of up to $15,000 from applicants of certain countries is \u201cregrettable but not unusual,\u201d noting that the measure applies to 38 countries and is linked to U.S. concerns over irregular migration and overstays. Speaking to reporters at [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":7029,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7027","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-5"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7027","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7027"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7027\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7031,"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7027\/revisions\/7031"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7029"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7027"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7027"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hernet.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7027"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}