By Oyinkansayo Wole-Bodunde
The US government is reversing its decision to revoke visas for hundreds of international students, whose legal status was suddenly terminated, sparking widespread fear of deportation. This development follows over 100 lawsuits filed by affected students.
According to a BBC report, Justice Department attorney Elizabeth Kurlan informed a federal court in California that immigration officials are creating a new system to review and terminate visas for international students. The policy change affects an estimated 1,800 students and 280 universities, as reported by Inside Higher Ed.
Many impacted students had participated in political protests or had prior minor infractions, such as traffic offenses. Secretary of State Marco Rubio had previously stated that the administration would revoke the status of individuals whose actions it deemed contrary to US interests.
The visa terminations caused panic on US campuses, with some students choosing to leave the country preemptively to avoid potential detention or deportation. “Losing their SEVIS records left students vulnerable to immigration actions — and possible detention and deportation,” said Elora Mukherjee, director of the Immigrants’ Rights Clinic at Columbia Law School.
The Justice Department announced that student records would be restored in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, which tracks foreign students’ visa compliance. However, Kurlan clarified that Immigration and Customs Enforcement retains the authority to terminate SEVIS records for other reasons, such as failing to maintain nonimmigrant status or engaging in unlawful activity. “If a student fails to maintain his or her nonimmigrant status after the record is reactivated or engages in other unlawful activity that would render him or her removable from the United States under the Immigration and Nationality Act,” Kurlan told the court.
Attorneys for the students reported that their clients’ SEVIS records have been restored in recent days. Despite this, advocates argue that the revocations violated students’ rights and disrupted their education. “What I’m hearing is that this is a reprieve for many students who have had their status reinstated in SEVIS. But this doesn’t mean this ordeal is over for the students who have had their records terminated,” Mukherjee said.
The ongoing legal battles and policy changes continue to create uncertainty for foreign students and universities across the US. The Justice Department and ICE did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
