The U.S. State Department has revoked more than 6,000 international student visas for violations of U.S. law and overstays, officials told the BBC, in a move that underscores the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration and foreign students.
The department said the “vast majority” of cases involved criminal offenses such as assault, burglary and driving under the influence, while several hundred were linked to “support for terrorism.” Officials did not elaborate on the definition but said some students had been flagged for expressing antisemitic behavior during pro-Palestinian protests.
Roughly 4,000 visas were revoked for lawbreaking, while 200–300 were canceled under “INA 3B,” a statute defining terrorism broadly as acts endangering human life or violating U.S. law.
The revocations come after the administration paused visa appointments for international students earlier this year before resuming them with tougher screening measures, including mandatory disclosure of social media accounts. Applicants are now reviewed for signs of hostility toward U.S. citizens, culture, or institutions, as well as ties to terrorist groups.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told lawmakers in May that “thousands” of visas had already been rescinded and warned that more cancellations were likely. “We’re going to continue to revoke the visas of people who are here as guests and are disrupting our higher education facilities,” Rubio said.
Democrats have criticized the measures as an attack on due process. More than 1.1 million international students from over 210 countries were enrolled at U.S. universities in the 2023–24 academic year, according to Open Doors, which tracks foreign student data.
