Miss Universe Zimbabwe, Roseanna Hall, and several other African contestants could miss this year's competition in Puerto Rico as they race to secure U.S. visas, the BBC reported. Hall is due to represent Zimbabwe at the 75th edition of the pageant, with the winner set to be crowned on Nov. 24. She has not yet obtained a visa to travel to the U.S. territory. "We have been back and forth, trying to get my visa approved," Hall said in a video posted on her Instagram page. Zambia has already withdrawn its representative, Pamela Mubanga, because of U.S. travel restrictions.
Contestants began arriving in Puerto Rico on Nov. 8 for registration, fittings, and other pre-pageant activities, adding pressure on Hall and others, including the representative from South Sudan. "Officially, today is the day I was supposed to be leaving for Puerto Rico for the 75th edition of Miss Universe," Hall said. Zimbabwe is among 19 countries subject to partial U.S. travel restrictions introduced under Presidential Proclamation 10998, which took effect on Jan. 1, 2026. The measures suspend the issuance of visitor, student, and exchange visas, as well as immigrant visas, to nationals of the affected countries, and impose restrictions on other categories of non-immigrant visas.
In a statement, the Miss Universe organization in Zambia said Mubanga's situation was a consequence of those travel restrictions rather than individual circumstances. "Unlike situations where a contestant's visa is denied due to personal circumstances, documentation or organisational challenges, Mubanga's situation is linked to the United States' presidential travel restriction affecting Zambia and other African countries," the statement said. Mubanga, 25, a registered nurse, was crowned Miss Universe Zambia on Oct. 8. The statement said five other African countries faced similar difficulties, although it did not name them. Hall said she shared their concerns and had spent the past few weeks in South Africa trying to secure her visa. "I am not alone in this predicament. Some of my African sisters are facing the same predicament, and I know exactly what they are going through," she said.
Miss Universe South Sudan also expressed uncertainty, commenting on Hall's video: "It is 50/50 whether we will make it, Miss Universe." In another video posted three days earlier, Hall said she was still hoping to reach Puerto Rico, captioning it, "The fight to get Zimbabwe to Puerto Rico continues." The pageant's final is scheduled at the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum in San Juan. The verified situation is a visa bottleneck created by a presidential proclamation, already enough to pull Zambia out and leave other contestants waiting, not a ruling that Hall has been formally barred.