Yesterday, the US Department of State announced that it would temporarily suspend the acceptance of visa applications for citizens of 75 countries. Azerbaijan was also included in the list.
The US Embassy in Azerbaijan, however, announced that the aforementioned suspension applies only to immigrant (permanent residency) visas and does not extend to non-immigrant visa applications for business travel, student, and exchange programs. According to the information, the acceptance of non-immigrant visa applications continues at the US Embassy in Baku.
Against the backdrop of this decision, the level of development of existing tourist relations between the US and Azerbaijan, and the current state of tourist exchange between the two countries, also come into focus.
Commenting on the tourist relations between the two countries in a statement to Modern.az, Chairman of Skal Baku Tourism Professionals organization Ceyhun Ashurov noted that against the backdrop of the US Department of State's decision to temporarily suspend the acceptance of visa applications for citizens of 75 countries, US-Azerbaijan relations currently demonstrate a positive dynamic overall.
“Certain advancements are observed on both political and economic levels, and the US values Azerbaijan as one of the countries of interest in the region. Naturally, such political and economic relations do not remain without impact on mutual visits.
Although the US is not among the top 10 countries in the world for tourist arrivals, it is one of the countries with the strongest indicators in terms of tourism revenue. The main reason for this is the high spending level of tourists visiting America. For example, in 2019, the US generated over 214 billion dollars from tourism. Although these figures decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic, the US remains a country that maintains its global leadership in terms of tourism revenue”.
According to the expert, a significant portion of those visiting America are individuals traveling for health and medical tourism, education, innovative projects, startups, and business purposes:
“According to statistical data, in 2019, before the pandemic, approximately 19,000 people visited Azerbaijan from the US. Although this number sharply decreased in 2020, an increase has been observed again since 2022. Specifically, the number of visits by US citizens to Azerbaijan was 12.3 thousand in 2022, approximately 17 thousand in 2023, and close to 23 thousand in 2024.
Although the accuracy of statistical data regarding visits from Azerbaijan to the US is not entirely clear, the available figures indicate a downward trend. In 2019, approximately 6,000 people from Azerbaijan visited the US. In 2020, this number dropped to approximately 1,215 people. In 2024, only 60, and in 2025, approximately 150 people are reported to have visited the US. This suggests that the number of visitors from the US to Azerbaijan is significantly higher than those traveling from Azerbaijan to the US, and a large portion of these visits are primarily official in nature”.
C. Ashurov added that in recent years, a relative increase has been observed in the number of people traveling from Azerbaijan to the US for educational, medical, and business purposes:
“The temporary suspension of visas, naturally, may have some impact on Azerbaijan as well. However, the already limited number of visits does not suggest that this impact will be significant. I believe that this decision will not create any tension or concern in US-Azerbaijan relations.
Financial issues and immigration-related factors are cited as the main reasons for the decision. Since the number of citizens traveling from Azerbaijan to the US is small, this decision may have only a limited impact on tourist visits. Overall, the US is not among the most frequently visited countries for Azerbaijani citizens”.
The tourism expert emphasized that the main reason for suspending immigrant visas is justified by migrants receiving sufficient, even more, benefits from the US, and that the acceptance of visa applications will be restored once full clarity is established on the matter. In his opinion, the possibility that the decision serves a security purpose, against the backdrop of existing global tensions, is also not ruled out.
It should be recalled that the US Department of State is temporarily suspending the acceptance of visa applications for citizens of 75 countries. The decision will come into force on January 21, and the duration of the restrictions has not yet been announced. The decision covers a wide geographical area, from Russia to Iran, and from Brazil to Somalia, in addition to Azerbaijan.
