Minister for Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has allayed fears amongst Ghanaians after the United States (U.S) government made a U-turn on an earlier directive regarding visas.

According to the Minister, the new development will not undermine Ghana’s security or stability, as many are speculating. He added that Ghana did not make any concessions or compromises to get the U.S. visa restrictions adjusted.

In a post on the X platform, he wrote, “Since Ghana became the only country under US visa restrictions to secure a reversal from the Trump Administration, an avalanche of conspiracy theories has been making the rounds. May I respectfully ask that you ignore the conspiracy theorists and scaremongers”.

On Saturday, September 27, the U.S. Embassy in Ghana announced that visa restrictions imposed on Ghanaian nationals by the United States (U.S.) have officially been lifted by the U.S. government.

Prior to this announcement, Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, had written on the X platform that “I am really pleased that months of high-level diplomatic negotiations has led to a successful outcome. I am really pleased that months of high-level diplomatic negotiations has led to a successful outcome”.

According to the U.S. Embassy in Ghana, B1/B2 visas, which cover business and tourism travel, are now valid for up to five years with multiple entries, while F1 student visas are valid for up to four years with multiple entries. For F1 student visas, the Consular stated that the maximum validity has changed from a single entry with three months expiration to four years with multiple entries.

“The U.S. Embassy is pleased to announce that the maximum validity periods for all categories of nonimmigrant visas for Ghanaians have been restored to their previous lengths. The maximum validity allowed for the B1/B2 visitor visa is again five years, multiple entry. The maximum validity for the F1 student visa is again four years, multiple entry,” it indicated on X.

It will be recalled that the US imposed visa restrictions on Ghana and other countries in July this year. The affected countries were slapped with a maximum three-month single-entry visa and other limitations. In the specific case of Ghana, the Trump Administration said they were reacting to many years of visa overstays, mainly by students.

In July, the U.S. Department of State—Bureau of Consular Affairs limited the number of entries and duration given under non-immigrant visa classifications.

Ghanaian visa applicants, including those applying for B-class visas covering business and tourism travel, will be issued single-entry visas valid for just three months. It emphasized that they can no longer access the 5-year visa and multiple-entry.

The guidelines were published under the U.S. Visa, which revealed that Reciprocity and Civil Documents by Country for Ghana also affect student visa applicants.

It noted that the F-1 visa holders, who are typically enrolled in full-time academic programmes in the U.S., will now be issued visas that allow for only one entry and expire after three months.

Additionally, diplomats and government officials will, however, continue to receive multiple-entry visas with validity ranging from 24 to 60 months.

The K1 visa, issued to the foreign-citizen fiancé(e) of a US citizen intending to marry within 90 days of arrival in the United States, and the K2 visa, provided to the unmarried dependent child (under 21 years old) of a K1 visa holder, are single-entry visas that will be valid for 6 months.

The K3 visa, for the foreign-citizen spouse of a US citizen, and the K4 visa, for their unmarried dependent child (under 21 years old), are multiple-entry visas that will be valid for 24 months.

All other visa applicants, including those applying for B-class visas, which cover business and tourism travel, will now be issued single-entry visas valid for just three months.

In reaction to the US' new policy that affects Ghana and Nigeria, the Vice President of IMANI-Africa, Bright Simons, quizzed whether or not Ghana and Nigeria can retaliate.

"Given the scale and scope of the restrictions this time around now, citizen interest is likely to be much higher putting pressure on the government to openly discuss the measures it intends to take in response," he noted while revealing how diplomatic channels resolved similar actions by the US in the past.

He called on the government to provide statistics on whether or not US citizens coming to Ghana do not get long-term, multiple-entry visas as often as Ghanaian citizens visiting the US do.

"Thus, they are trying to frame the issue as one of "reciprocity". Something that, per policy, they ought to review regularly. Our governments should publish stats on this. Is it true or not?"

"The visa regimes of some other places Ghanaians like to visit, like Europe, China, and the Middle-East, are not any more liberal. Getting long-term, multiple-entry visas for these places has been quite hard. It may be hard to justify retaliation against the US when visa rules for other places seem just as tight or even tighter. Except, of course, that there is no rule that says that retaliation must be symmetrical," he added.

The development comes at a time when U.S. President Donald J. Trump has imposed a fifteen percent (15%) ad valorem tariff on Ghana’s exports.

This means that Ghanaian goods shipped to the U.S. will be charged a 15% tax based on their price. Thus, a product at $100, would be $115 as a result of the $15 tariff. The U.S. government explains that the new development forms part of the efforts to protect its economy, as the country buys more goods from other countries than it sells to them.

According to the Executive Order, “These modifications shall be effective with respect to goods entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after 12:01 a.m.” The policy is expected to reflect on Ghanaian goods entering the U.S. in the coming days, which will affect many countries, including Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Uganda, Mozambique, Mauritius, Malawi, Lesotho, and Madagascar.

Also, countries such as South Africa and Libya face a 30 percent tariff, while Tunisia will face a 25 percent steeper duty. Meanwhile, the Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA) and Ghana’s Trade Ministry are yet to react to the new tariff. The new tariff adjustment comes at a time when the Ghanaian government is implementing tax reforms to ensure the elimination of successive charges of taxation that increase the cost of goods and services.

Although the measure is premised on the principle of reciprocity, President Trump insisted in the executive order that the United States had been unfairly disadvantaged by trade barriers erected by other countries. This policy affects numerous Ghanaian exports, notably those under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which previously allowed duty-free access to the U.S. market.

Ghanaian officials have criticized the move, arguing that the U.S. cannot claim the tariffs are to protect domestic industries. Ghana is not facing the issue in isolation; as such, the African Union and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) are coordinating a collective response.

Some African nations, such as Lesotho, could face import duties of up to 50 percent. The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which was passed by the U.S. Congress in 2000 to provide duty-free access for African exports to the U.S. market, remains in effect but faces new scrutiny in light of the latest U.S. trade policy shift.

In 2022, two-way trade between AGOA members and the US exceeded $46 billion, with $13.5 billion more in imports than exports. That year, AGOA recipients exported $30 billion worth of goods to the US, of which $10.2 billion were sold under the duty-free AGOA preference.

However, with AGOA’s framework set to expire in September, there are growing concerns that the Trump administration’s stance may hinder any renewal. The U.S. government in May announced a new 10% tariff on exports, but the then U.S. Ambassador to Ghana, Virginia Palmer, insisted that the new global tariff adjustments could benefit Ghana, unlike other countries.

In an interview with Citi News on Monday, May 26, she explained that the 10% tariff on exports to the U.S. is in favor of Ghana, as the nation's key exports, oil and gas, are not affected, as it is imposed on rival countries.

“There were 10% applied globally, which the new US administration has taken, that may in the short term [be] to Ghana’s advantage, vis-à-vis its competitors. Oil and gas, which is being [a] major exporter to the US, is not subject to the tariff. If Ghana faces a 10% tariff, Bangladesh and Vietnam face 47% and 63%,” she said.

According to her, Ghana is currently in a better position in the U.S. market as compared to 60 countries that are facing a much higher rate of the 10% imposed tax. "There were 60 countries where tariffs were much higher than 10%, which may be an advantage for Ghana in the near term. I hope that Ghana will be the one making that point to the American legislature when it expires at the end of September [2025]," she added.

Virginia Palmer therefore urged the country's leadership to seize the advantage to persuade the U.S. government to renew a trade benefit before its expiry in September this year. She emphasized that Ghana remains a valued partner. Trade analysts, on the other hand, suggest the U.S. is unintentionally nudging African countries toward deeper engagement with China.

In July, The U.S. Department of State—Bureau of Consular Affairs limited the number of entries and duration given under non-immigrant visa classifications.

Ghanaian visa applicants, including those applying for B-class visas—covering business and tourism travel—will be issued single-entry visas valid for just three months. They can no longer access the 5-year visa and multiple-entry. The updated guidelines, published under the U.S. Visa, reveal that Reciprocity and Civil Documents by Country for Ghana also affect student visa applicants.

F-1 visa holders, who are typically enrolled in full-time academic programmes in the U.S., will now be issued visas that allow for only one entry and expire after three months. Diplomats and government officials will, however, continue to receive multiple-entry visas with validity ranging from 24 to 60 months.

The K1 visa, issued to the foreign-citizen fiancé(e) of a US citizen intending to marry within 90 days of arrival in the United States, and the K2 visa, provided to the unmarried dependent child (under 21 years old) of a K1 visa holder, are single-entry visas that will be valid for 6 months.

The K3 visa, for the foreign-citizen spouse of a US citizen, and the K4 visa, for their unmarried dependent child (under 21 years old), are multiple-entry visas that will be valid for 24 months. All other visa applicants, including those applying for B-class visas, which cover business and tourism travel, will now be issued single-entry visas valid for just three months.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has debunked reports that it is responsible for the United States government's revision of the reciprocity schedule for a considerable number of African countries, including Ghana.

The ministry noted that, consistent with bilateral arrangements, US passport holders are entitled to a maximum visa validity of five years, and in most instances, five-year multiple-entry visas are issued upon request. "Some applicants, however, apply for single-entry visas owing largely to limited validity of their passports," a statement released by the Ministry read.

Besides the maximum five-year multiple visas, Ghana also issues multiple-entry 6-month, one-year, two-year, three-year, and four-year visas based on various considerations. From January 2025 to date, 40,648 visas have been issued by Ghana's missions in Washington, D.C., and New York. Out of this, 28,626 are multiple-entry visas to Ghana.

The statement further indicated that "The official statistics clearly demonstrate that, contrary to false narratives, Ghana has issued, on average, an impressive 70.42% of multiple long-term visas to US passport holders, consistent with our bilateral arrangements."