The United States is pausing all routine visa applications for citizens of the southern African nation of Zimbabwe.

Umit Bektas/Reuters The US embassy in Zimbabwe is pausing all routine visa operations beginning Thursday, according to a memo sent by the State Department and viewed by Semafor. The pause, described as “temporary,

Tourists and business travelers from Zambia and Malawi must pay a deposit of up to $15,000 when seeking a US visa, the State Department has announced, in a move likened to a visa ban for the African nations,

The State Department said its new yearlong pilot program is aimed at making sure foreigners don’t overstay their visas. The State Department announced on Monday it will start a new pilot program in August that will require some foreign travelers to pay up to $15,

In a notice to be published in the Federal Register on Tuesday, the department said it would start a 12-month pilot program under which people from countries deemed to have high overstay rates and deficient internal document security controls could be required to post bonds of $5,