By Uganda is among 19 African countries selected to retain U.S. visa-processing services as Washington consolidates its consular operations across the continent.
Under the new arrangement, the United States is reducing the number of African embassies and consulates handling routine visa applications from nearly 50 to 20 regional processing hubs. Kampala is among the designated centres, alongside cities including Nairobi, Kigali, Accra, Addis Ababa, Johannesburg and Lagos.
The restructuring means applicants from countries where routine U.S. visa services have been discontinued may have to travel to one of the designated hubs for interviews, biometric appointments and other visa-related procedures. The United States says the changes are intended to improve efficiency, strengthen security and standardise visa screening.
For Uganda, retaining Kampala as a regional visa-processing centre could strengthen its position as a diplomatic and travel hub in East Africa. However, the development comes against a backdrop of wider changes to U.S. visa services, including a temporary suspension of visa operations at the U.S. Embassy in Kampala announced in May 2026.
The U.S. says the affected embassies will remain open and continue providing other consular services even where routine visa processing has ended.
