[Curiosities] Moroccans Are Second Largest Arab Nationality to Receive US Visas in 2021

[BirSaNN]

Visas issued to Moroccan migrants in the US noted a gradual increase over the past decade, going from over 1,500 in 2012 to over 2,000 in 2016.

Rabat - More than 3,500 Moroccans received visas from the United States government at the end of 2021, making them the second largest Arab foreigner group to receive visas to the US.

A report from the US State Department details that Morocco is only second to Yemeni nationals in receiving visas. More than 2,000 visas were issued to Moroccans on the basis of having “immediate relatives” in the country, followed by over 1,000 visas issued for “diverse immigration” purposes. 

On the continental level, Morocco is only second to Nigeria. Nigerian nationals received a total of nearly 5,000 visas to the US over the same period, the report specifies.

Data from the State Department suggests that the number of visas issued to Moroccan migrants in the US noted a gradual increase over the past decade. Visas issued to Moroccans went from over 1,500 in 2012 to over 2,000 in 2016. 

The flow of Moroccan migrants to the US was slower between 2017 and 2018, going from 1,100 to 1,300, and especially plummeted in 2020 during the height of the COVID-induced travel restrictions. A little more than 900 visas were issued in 2020 to Moroccan nationals.

“Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, posts were instructed to suspend routine visa services and provide only mission critical and emergency services in late March 2020,” the department said in the report. “This had a significant impact on the provision of Immigrant and Nonimmigrant Visa-related services. Posts were only able to resume limited services on a post-by-post basis beginning in July 2020, as local conditions allowed.”

link: https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2022/12/353216/moroccans-are-second-largest-arab-nationality-to-receive-us-visas-in-2021