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Nicaragua’s government has blocked Cuban citizens from entering the Central American country without a visa in a move that eliminates a route for Cuban migration into the U.S.
For years, Cuban migrants would fly to Nicaragua and meet up with smugglers, who would then help them migrate north through Central America and Mexico to get to the U.S. border, according to The Associated Press.
However, Nicaragua’s government confirmed to the AP that on Sunday it suspended an exemption that allows Cubans to enter Nicaragua without a visa.
Nicaragua’s move comes after President Donald Trump in late January declared a national emergency via an executive order over Cuba, accusing the communist regime there of aligning with hostile foreign powers and terrorist groups while moving to punish countries that supply the island nation with oil.
POST-MADURO, PRESSURE BUILDS ON MEXICO OVER CUBA’S NEW OIL LIFELINE
A man walks past a gas station that has run out of fuel, located near the U.S. Embassy, pictured in the background, in Havana, Cuba, Feb. 7, 2026. (Ramon Espinosa/AP)
What remains for Cuban migrants is primarily Guyana, a small South American nation where Cubans have also traveled in order to reach the U.S.
From Guyana, migrants normally travel through the perilous jungle trenches of the Darien Gap dividing Colombia and Panama.
In the past, migrants with few other options have also taken precarious boat rides from Cuba to Florida’s coast.
SANCTIONED RUSSIAN JET TOUCHES DOWN IN CUBA, ECHOING SECRET FLIGHTS BEFORE MADURO’S OUSTER
Cubans wait in line outside the Nicaraguan Embassy in Havana, Cuba, on Feb. 9, 2026. (Norlys Perez/Reuters)
In Trump’s executive order, the president said Cuba aligns itself with and provides support for “numerous hostile countries, transnational terrorist groups, and malign actors adverse to the United States,” naming Russia, China, Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah.
The administration said Cuba hosts Russia’s largest overseas signals intelligence facility, which the order states attempts to steal sensitive U.S. national security information.
Last November, Trump wrote on Truth Social, “Democracy is on trial in the coming Elections in the beautiful country of Honduras on November 30th.”
“Will Maduro and his Narcoterrorists take over another country like they have taken over Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela?” he asked.
A man holds his passport while waiting to enter the Nicaraguan Embassy in Havana, Cuba, on Feb. 9, 2026. (Norlys Perez/Reuters)
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Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro was captured in a U.S. military operation in early January.
Fox News Digital’s Jasmine Baehr and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
