By Kyra Alessandrini
Blavity
https://blavity.com/
The U.S. Department of State has revoked over 6,000 international student visas, citing law violations such as assault, driving under the influence, burglary and “support for terrorism.” The news comes amid the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration and student protests in support of Palestine.
The department told the BBC that 4,000 out of 6,000 student visas were revoked due to violations of U.S. law and overstays. About 200 to 300 visas were also revoked for “terrorism done under INA 3B,” which refers to the endangerment of human life or activity in violation of the law. The U.S. Department of State did not detail specifics about what it referred to as “terrorism.”
The news comes as the Trump administration recently issued new guidelines for student visa applications
The government announced in June that it would ask applicants to make their social media accounts public in order to search for “any indications of hostility toward the citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles of the United States”.
State Department officers were instructed to screen applicants for those “who advocate for, aid, or support designated foreign terrorists and other threats to national security; or who perpetrate unlawful anti-Semitic harassment or violence,” according to the BBC.
International student enrollment has been declining
Over 1.1 million international students hailing from more than 210 countries were enrolled in higher education institutions during the 2023-24 school year, according to Open Doors and as reported by the BBC.
In May, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that “thousands” of student visas had been revoked since the beginning of the year.
“I don’t know the latest count, but we probably have more to do,” he said at the time. “We’re going to continue to revoke the visas of people who are here as guests and are disrupting our higher education facilities.”
In 2024, about 400,000 student visas were issued by the U.S. Department of State, CNN reported. This number may decline by 30 to 40%, according to NAFSA.
“Such an outcome would deprive local economies of $7 billion in spending and more than 60,000 jobs,” the organization said in July. “Without significant recovery in visa issuance in July and August, up to 150,000 fewer students may arrive this fall.”
