No One Left Behind Calls for SIV Exemption from Visa Suspension Following Iraq Withdrawal

WASHINGTON – As the Department of Defense confirms the completion of U.S. military withdrawal from Iraqi federal territory, No One Left Behind urges the Administration to exempt Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) applicants from the recently announced suspension of immigrant visa processing.

The U.S. Government first announced this planned withdrawal on September 27, 2024.

The State Department's January 15, 2026, announcement pauses immigrant visa processing for nationals of 75 countries, including both Iraq and Afghanistan, effective January 21. The stated rationale involves reviewing public charge eligibility criteria. This framework does not account for SIV applicants, who are individuals with years of documented U.S. government employment who have completed extensive multi-phase, interagency vetting.

SIV-eligible allies are interpreters, security advisors, engineers, and allies who completed robust and dangerous service with U.S. forces and diplomats, often for years, under conditions requiring continuous reliability assessment. When they are issued an SIV, they arrive with documented professional capacity and employment authorization. They are ready to continue their contributions to American strength and prosperity.

The suspension of immigrant visa issuance leaves our Iraqi allies, who served alongside American forces, particularly vulnerable as they face heightened militia retaliation with U.S. presence removed from much of the country. 

As the U.S. completes its withdrawal from these regions, No One Left Behind calls on the Administration to:

• Exempt SIV applicants from the immigrant visa processing pause,

• Ensure continued adjudication and issuance for eligible allies by the U.S. Mission in Iraq, and

• Provide timely, clear guidance to allies awaiting final visa issuance.

Congress established the Afghan and Iraqi SIV programs with bipartisan support because lawmakers recognized that honoring wartime partners serves both strategic and moral interests. Suspending processing for individuals who protected American servicemembers, whose U.S. government employment is documented record, damages credibility with future partners, and abandons those who earned America's protection.

No One Left Behind remains committed to working with Congress and Administration officials to advance both national security and our obligations to proven allies.

###

About No One Left Behind 

No One Left Behind is the nation's oldest veteran-founded nonprofit dedicated to ensuring America keeps its promise to wartime allies from Iraq and Afghanistan. Since 2013, NOLB has provided advocacy, resettlement assistance, and financial support to thousands of SIV recipients who served alongside U.S. troops.