Trump’s administration is looking to eliminate certain student visas amid pandemic

Trump’s administration is looking to eliminate certain student visas amid pandemic

On March 8, Harvard and MIT filed a lawsuit to is seeking to prevent the Trump administration from eliminating foreign student visas if the universities decide to change their programs to exclusive online classes amid the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic.

Last Monday (March 6), as you can read in The Hill, ICE (US Immigration and Customs Enforcement) announced that international students whose courses moved entirely online would be required to leave the country. This was communicated in spite of a statement they made in March where they said that international students in the US would be given an exemption from the requirement to attend in-person classes while the health crisis was taking place.

“The U.S. Department of State will not issue visas to students enrolled in schools and/or programs that are fully online for the fall semester nor will U.S. Customs and Border Protection permit these students to enter the United States,” ICE said on Monday. “Active students currently in the United States enrolled in such programs must depart the country or take other measures, such as transferring to a school with in-person instruction to remain in lawful status. If not, they may face immigration consequences including, but not limited to, the initiation of removal proceedings,” they continued.

For this reason, Harvard and MIT asked a federal court in Boston for a temporary restraining order and permanent injunction against the administration’s new policy. The lawsuit alleges that it seems as if the ICE is forcing universities to reopen in-person classes and therefore increasing the risk of exposure to the virus.

“By threatening to force many F-1 students to withdraw from Harvard and MIT, Defendants have put both schools to an impossible choice: lose numerous students who bring immense benefits to the school or take steps to retain those students through in-person classes, even when those steps contradict each school’s judgment about how best to protect the health of the students, faculty, staff, and the entire university community,” the schools wrote in their complaint.

Which states will be the most affected by this measure?

According to an article published by NBC News, the states with more international students and that would be the most affected by ICE’s new measures will be California, New York, Texas, Massachusetts, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Florida. This means that those people who are holding an F-1 or M-1 visa would need to depart the country or transfer to a school with in-person instruction. 

More than a million international students with these visas have been thrown into uncertainty after the announcement, especially with the beginning of a new school year just a few weeks away. But not only that, but it will also mean an important impact in the US economy since “overall, international students contributed $41 billion to the US economy in 2018-19, according to NAFSA2”, you can read in NBC News’ article.

If you or anyone you know needs advice on their immigration status in the city of San Diego, California, Kannan Law works with immigration, personal injury and criminal defense cases. Contact our firm today for more information.