Dozens of foreign students in the US were ordered to self-deport after their F-1 visas were canceled for alleged campus activism. The suppression does not even stop at physical attendance, as reported to have targeted students who only liked or shared ‘anti-national’ posts on social media. Immigration lawyers have attested that some Indian students are also being impacted, according to The Times of India.
As per the new Open Doors report, 1.1 million foreign students were enrolled in the US during 2023-24, including 3.31 lakh Indians. The cancellations come on the heels of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s announcement to crack down on foreign students participating in so-called anti-national activities.
Marco Rubio’s Statement on Visa Revocations
Rubio, addressing a press conference in Guyana, confirmed the cancellations:
It could be over 300 now. We do it daily. Each time I catch one of these crazies, I revoke their visas. Every nation in the world has the right to determine whom it wishes to admit as a visitor and whom not.”
Speaking to the press on his way back to Washington, he further indicated that the 300 canceled visas were composed of both student and visitor visas. “Eventually, I hope we exhaust them because we’ve eliminated all of them, but we’re searching day by day for these crazies that are destroying everything.”
Examination of New Applications
Senator Rubio recently launched an AI-based tool, Catch and Revoke, to detect and revoke visas of students backing Hamas or other sanctioned terrorist groups. In the process of such enforcement, the US Department of State (DOS) as well as consulate officials are now carefully examining new requests for study (F), vocational (M), and exchange (J) visas. The applicants who are found to be indulging in such activities are denied a visa.
Details of the Email
Students affected by the revocation received an email instructing them to self-deport using the CBP Home App, which was launched by the Trump administration on March 10. The email, as cited by TOI, stated:
“On behalf of the United States Department of State, the Bureau of Consular Affairs Visa Office informs you on behalf of the United States Department of State that further information came to our attention after your visa was issued. Consequently, your F-1 visa which expires on XXXXX was cancelled in accordance with Section 221(i) of the United States Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended.”
The letter also cautioned that staying in the US beyond legal immigration status might result in fines, detention, or deportation.
“It can also render you ineligible for a future US visa. Note that deportation can occur at a time that does not enable the deportee to acquire possessions or wind up matters in the United States. Deportees can be deported to nations that are not their countries of origin.”
They were also told that if at any time they wanted to come back to the US, they would have to get a new visa.
“As soon as you leave the United States, you need to personally surrender your passport to the US embassy or consulate that issued your visa so your visa may be physically revoked. You must not try to use your visa, as it has been canceled.”. If you plan to visit the United States someday, you will need to apply for a different US visa, and at that time, a decision regarding your visa eligibility will be made.
Not a Birthright?
Rubio underscored earlier this week that it is not a birthright to have a US visa and that those who break its conditions would need to depart.
“I don’t know when we’ve got it in our head that a visa is some sort of birthright. It is not,” Rubio said on CBS News’s Face the Nation.
“It is a visitor into our country, and if you violate the terms of your visitation, you are going to leave.”
With the continued crackdown, students and immigration analysts are watching closely the effects of these revocations on US international education.
