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US Imposes New Entry Restrictions On Tongan Citizens
Kaya Selby, RNZ Pacific journalist
Tongan citizens will see further entry restrictions into the United States.
This comes after President Donald Trump issued an executive order on Tuesday strengthening entry restrictions for countries with deficiencies in screening, vetting, and information sharing.
The White House said a swathe of countries, predominantly in Africa and the Middle East, would see restrictions "country-specific" due to " each country's unique circumstances".
Reasons included unreliable civil documents and criminal records, non-existent birth-registration systems, refusal to share data, high visa-overstay rates, and refusal to repatriate deportees.
More than 20 countries are included in the list and handed either full of partial suspension. Tonga is one of 15 additional nations added to the list.
According to the White House, Tonga had a B-1/B-2 visa overstay rate of 6.45 percent and an F, M, and J visa overstay rate of 14.44 percent.
The US B-1/B-2 visas is a US non-immigrant visa for temporary visits - such as business and tourism - to the US. The F, M and J visas are non-immigrant categories for temporary study or exchange.
There are more than 48,000 people who identify as Tongan "alone" living in the US, according to the 2020 US Census. While those who identify as Tongan in combination with other races or ancestries, total more than 78,000.
The Tongan Prime Minister's office and the US Embassy has been approached for comment.
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