Turkmen citizens planning to travel to the United States on business or tourist visas are now required to post a deposit ranging from $5,000 to $15,000 as part of the visa application process. For citizens of the Central Asian republic, the rule took effect on January 1, 2026, according to materials published on the U.S. State Department’s website.
As of the start of this year, the deposit requirement has become mandatory for citizens of seven countries. In addition to Turkmenistan, the list includes Bhutan, Botswana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Namibia, and the Central African Republic. The total number of countries subject to the requirement has now reached 13, most of them in Africa.
Under the current procedure, applicants in this category must post a deposit of $5,000, $10,000, or $15,000 when applying for a visa. The amount is determined after an interview with a U.S. consular officer, who issues specific instructions to the applicant. Payment must be made electronically through the U.S. Treasury Department’s pay.gov system. The State Department notes that if other online services are used to submit the deposit, the U.S. government bears no responsibility for the funds. The deposit is also nonrefundable if paid without an explicit directive from a consular officer.
Officials stress that posting a deposit does not guarantee that a visa will be issued.
The deposit will be returned if the visa is denied, or if the traveler either does not enter the United States during the period of validity of the visa or leaves the country in compliance with the permitted length of stay.
In addition, under U.S. law, residents of countries subject to the deposit requirement may enter the United States only through three international airports: in New York, Washington, and Boston.
According to information published by the State Department, starting January 21, 2026, the list of countries whose citizens must post a deposit when obtaining a visa will expand significantly. The updated list will include two more Central Asian states: Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.
ℹ️ In early June last year, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled “Restricting the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the United States From Foreign Terrorists and Other Threats to National and Public Safety,” which introduced full or partial bans on entry to the United States for citizens of 19 countries, including Turkmenistan. Turkmenistan was included solely because of a high rate of visa overstays.
The authorities in Ashgabat said the restrictions caused “extreme misunderstanding and concern.” The Turkmen Foreign Ministry described the U.S. decision as a “hasty step” that fails to take into account the results of bilateral Turkmen-U.S. cooperation across a wide range of areas, including migration policy.
