US visa bond up to $46,700 now permanent for Tongans

Nuku'alofa, Tonga: Tongans applying for business and tourism U.S. visas may be required to pay a bond of up to TOP$46,700 after the United States made permanent its visa bond program for nationals of 50 countries, including Tonga, the U.S. Department of State has announced. Bonds are required of nationals of countries with “high overstay rates, deficient information sharing, insufficient identity verification and criminal records, and that need improvement in the area of screening and vetting and the security of travel and civil documents, including in the granting of citizenship."