The UK will stop processing applications for visitor visas from Nigeria because, according to the UK, travelers from Nigeria have contributed 15% of its omicron cases as of Dec. 5.

In a statement announcing the suspension, the UK said prospective travelers can still apply for visas but they will not hear back from the immigrations unit on the status of their application, nor will they be refunded if they have provided biometric details during the application process.

The UK issues visitor visas for such needs as visiting friends and family, tourism, business meetings, studies for less than 6 months, and for private medical treatment. But except for British and Irish citizens living in Nigeria, request for any of this will be left in limbo.

The visa suspension affects applications from Nigeria and 10 Southern African countries on the UK’s covid-19 red list. Nigeria’s addition to the list today (Dec. 6) comes less than a week after first cases of omicron variant were reported in the country. Ghana reported cases on the same day but is not on the UK’s red list.