WASHINGTON — The Trump administration has imposed visa sanctions against four countries that have refused to take back citizens who were convicted of crimes in the United States and ordered deported, officials said on Wednesday.

The Department of Homeland Security said it notified the State Department that the governments of Cambodia, Eritrea, Guinea and Sierra Leone had denied or unreasonably delayed accepting the return of convicts. American diplomats in the countries were ordered to impose visa restrictions, officials said in a statement, but did not say what types of visas would be affected.

“International law obligates each country to accept the return of its nationals ordered removed from the United States,” said Elaine Duke, the acting secretary of Homeland Security. “Cambodia, Eritrea, Guinea, and Sierra Leone have failed in that responsibility.”

Officials said the restrictions would remain in place until the countries cooperate.

The issue has been a longstanding problem for officials at Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency charged with deportations.