Nigerian doctors are expected to gain from a policy shift by the United States, allowing physicians to restart visa applications and processing.
Earlier in the year, the US introduced a broad visa restriction affecting several countries, including Nigeria, over security concerns.
The move impacted foreign medical professionals, with many Nigerians affected as the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) halted visa renewals.
Data from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) shows that international medical graduates make up 25.6 percent of practising physicians in the US.
A 2024 global health workforce report also ranked Nigerians as the sixth-largest group of foreign doctors in the US under the J-1 visa category, excluding H-1B visa holders.
Last week, the USCIS quietly updated its website, signalling a reversal of the restriction without a formal announcement, confirming that physicians are no longer subject to the processing suspension.
“Applications associated with medical physicians will continue processing,” the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a separate statement.
The AAMC highlighted that the US is currently facing a shortage of about 65,000 doctors, a gap expected to widen in the coming years due to an ageing population and retiring professionals.
On April 8, several medical bodies, including the American Academies of Family Physicians, Neurology and Paediatrics, jointly raised “urgent concern” over obstacles preventing “qualified, vetted physicians” from entering or remaining in the US.
They also urged authorities to grant exemptions in the national interest and speed up the processing of affected applications.