The United States has removed Mali from the list of countries whose nationals are required to deposit a $10,000 bond before securing visas to travel to the US.
On October 8, the US had announced that Malians would be required to post the bond starting October 23, 2025.
Not long thereafter, Bamako imposed a reciprocal measure on October 11 that required American nationals to post a $10,000 bond before getting visas to visit Mali, effective October 12.
“In accordance with the principle of reciprocity, Mali has decided to introduce an identical visa programme, imposing the same conditions and requirements on US nationals as those applied to Malian citizens,” Mali’s foreign ministry said in a statement on October 12.
However, in a recent revised list, which was published on the US Department of State’s website on October 23, Washington excluded Mali from the list of nations required to post the visa bond.
The revision was made on a date that the bond on Malian travellers was supposed to take effect.
Mali is yet to respond to the United States’ latest move, resulting in uncertainty whether Bamako would rescind its decision to impose visa bond on Americans.
Following the revision on October 23, the US listed Mauritania, Sao Tome and Principe, Tanzania, The Gambia, Malawi, and Zambia as the African nations that must deposit a bond of up to $15,000 before securing a B1/B2 US visa.
The B1 visa is given to foreigners seeking to enter the US temporarily for business, while the B2 visa is extended to those on tourist visits.
The US said the visa bond imposed on several countries was “based on the B1/B2 overstay rate per the Department of Homeland Security’s FY 2024 Entry/Exit Overstay Report.”