A renewed effort by the U.S. government is impacting international students attending American universities, with numerous visa revocations reported across several institutions.
Over the weekend, colleges and universities nationwide confirmed that the visas of a significant number of their international students have been cancelled. While the precise connection remains unclear, these actions appear to follow statements concerning student activism related to the conflict in Israel.
The latest wave of revocations has affected students at prestigious institutions including Harvard University, the University of Michigan, Stanford University, UCLA, and Ohio State University among others. At Harvard, for example, three graduate students and two recent graduates saw their visas revoked by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
According to a report from *The Harvard Crimson*, DHS initiated these cancellations through what was described as a “routine records review.” Affected universities reported that they were not proactively notified about the visa revocations prior to discovery.
As stated in an email sent by the Harvard International Office, “We are not aware of the details of the revocations or the reasons for them, but we understand that comparable numbers of students and scholars in institutions across the country have experienced similar status changes in roughly the same timeframe.”
The University of Michigan also suffered significant impact, with four students having their visas revoked on Friday. One affected student has already departed the U.S., according to the *Detroit Free Press*.
Senator Marco Rubio indicated that visa revocations are occurring frequently, stating on March 28th that they are happening “every day.” He further commented, “I would argue that… what we have seen on campuses across the country where students literally cannot go to school, buildings are being taken over, activities going on – this is clearly an organized movement. And if you are in this country on a student visa and are a participant in those movements, we have a right to deny your visa.”
Rubio continued, “I think it would make sense to deny your visa. We’re going to err on the side of caution. We are not going to be importing activists into the United States.” He expressed that allowing such situations to continue is “lunacy.”
The Department of Homeland Security was contacted for comment.
Recent Developments:
- Proposed legislation suggests stricter controls on student visas for Chinese nationals.
- Several University of Massachusetts international students have also reported visa revocations.