U.S. President Donald Trump has claimed that about 33.3 per cent of Nigerian immigrant households in the United States receive public assistance, citing figures released by his administration as part of its renewed push to tighten immigration policies.
Trump made the assertion in a chart shared on his Truth Social platform on Sunday, highlighting what he described as welfare participation rates among immigrant households across more than 120 countries and territories. The chart tracked access to benefits such as food aid, healthcare support and other government-funded welfare programmes.
The data placed Nigeria around the middle of the ranking, with roughly one in three Nigerian immigrant families reportedly accessing some form of public assistance.
According to the chart, immigrants from Bhutan topped the list with 81.4 per cent of households on welfare, followed by Yemen at 75.2 per cent, Somalia at 71.9 per cent, and the Marshall Islands at 71.4 per cent. The Dominican Republic and Afghanistan were also listed high, each at 68.1 per cent.
At the lower end of the scale were Bermuda, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Korea and Kenya, with welfare participation rates estimated between 25 and 29 per cent.
Trump’s disclosure comes amid a series of immigration measures introduced throughout 2025, with welfare dependence increasingly cited as a key factor in determining entry and residency eligibility.
In June 2025, the White House issued a presidential proclamation imposing full and partial travel bans on several countries, citing national security risks, weak identity management systems and limited cooperation with U.S. immigration authorities.
The restrictions were later extended in December 2025, with the list expanded to 39 countries and scheduled to take effect from January 1, 2026. Under the revised policy, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, South Sudan and Syria were added to the full travel ban category.
Nigeria, alongside a number of African and Caribbean nations, was placed under partial restrictions, affecting access to immigrant visas and certain non-immigrant visa classes, including student (F), vocational (M) and exchange visitor (J) visas.
The administration has maintained that welfare usage statistics should play a central role in shaping U.S. immigration policy, arguing that the country must prioritise migrants who are less likely to rely on public resources.
