US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has announced that the US will deny visas to foreign nationals involved in cybercrime and cyber-enabled scams, with restrictions potentially extending to their immediate families. The policy targets overseas fraudsters — particularly Chinese transnational criminal organisations — who defrauded American citizens of over $10 billion in 2024 through investment scams and sextortion schemes. The restrictions draw on Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, a provision Rubio has previously used to impose visa bans on foreign officials who suppress free expression and workers who facilitated illegal immigration.
