The government of Nicaragua has barred Cuban citizens from entering the Central American country without a visa, eliminating the route for Cuban migration to the US.
For years, Cuban migrants would fly to Nicaragua and meet smugglers, who would then help them migrate north through Central America and Mexico to reach the U.S. border, according to The Associated Press.
However, Nicaragua’s government confirmed to the AP on Sunday that it suspended an exemption allowing Cubans to enter Nicaragua without a visa.
Nicaragua’s move comes after President Donald Trump declared a national emergency through an executive order on Cuba in late January, accusing the communist regime there of aligning itself with hostile foreign powers and terrorist groups as he sought to punish countries that supply the island with oil.
POST-MADURO WOULD BUILD PRESSURE ON MEXICO OVER CUBA’S NEW OIL LINE
A man walks past a gas station out of fuel, located near the U.S. Embassy, pictured in the background, in Havana, Cuba, Saturday, February 7, 2026. (Ramon Espinosa/AP)
What remains for Cuban migrants is mainly Guyana, a small South American country where Cubans have also traveled to reach the US.
From Guyana, migrants normally travel through the dangerous jungle trenches of the Darien Gap that divides Colombia and Panama.
In the past, migrants with few other options have also made precarious boat journeys from Cuba to the Florida coast.
SANCTIONED RUSSIAN JET ARRIVES IN CUBA, IN LAW OF SECRET FLIGHTS BEFORE DEPARTURE FROM MADURO
Cubans wait in line outside the Nicaraguan Embassy as Nicaragua ended visa-free entry for Cuban citizens in Havana, Cuba, on February 9, 2026. (Norlys Pérez/Reuters)
In Trump’s executive order, the president said Cuba is joining and supporting “numerous hostile countries, transnational terrorist groups, and malign actors hostile to the United States,” naming Russia, China, Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah.
The administration said Cuba hosts Russia’s largest overseas intelligence facility, which the order says seeks to steal sensitive U.S. national security information.
Last November, Trump wrote on Truth Social that “democracy is on trial in the upcoming elections in the beautiful country of Honduras on November 30.”
“Will Maduro and his narco-terrorists take over another country like they took over Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela?” he asked.
A man holds his passport as he waits to enter the Nicaraguan Embassy in Havana, Cuba, on February 9, 2026. (Norlys Pérez/Reuters)
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Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro was later captured during a US military operation in early January.
