Thousands of international students whose U.S. visas were recently revoked will have their legal status restored following a sudden policy reversal by the Trump administration.
The Trump administration announced on Friday that it will restore the visa records of potentially thousands of international students whose legal status in the United States had been abruptly revoked in recent months. The decision came during a federal court hearing in Boston, where the government's policy was being challenged.
The reversal affects students whose records had been terminated from the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), a federal database managed by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that tracks compliance among approximately 1.1 million foreign student visa holders. The removal of these records placed students at risk of deportation, sparking lawsuits and widespread concern within the academic community.
Since President Donald Trump assumed office on January 20, more than 4,700 student visa holders had their SEVIS records deleted, according to the American Immigration Lawyers Association. The reasons behind the terminations were not always clear, but many students claimed they were unaware of violations and had no chance to respond before losing legal status.
SEVIS requires students to maintain compliance with visa terms, which include full-time academic enrolment, limited employment, and lawful conduct. Any deviation can result in automatic record termination.
The sudden change in stance was disclosed in an email from a government lawyer shortly before a hearing in the case of Carrie Zheng, a student at Boston University whose visa status was among those challenged. U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor read the email aloud in court, revealing that ICE was now working on a formal policy to govern SEVIS terminations and that all affected student records, including Zheng’s, would remain active or be restored pending new guidelines.
The policy shift provides temporary relief for international students who had faced legal uncertainty. However, it remains unclear how long the restoration will last or what the forthcoming ICE policy will entail.
U.S. federal prosecutors have charged six people over an alleged scheme that arranged hundreds of fraudulent ma...
Türkiye, Qatar, Pakistan and Indonesia have signed a new defence industry agreement in Doha, bringing existing military projects under a share...
Georgia's Constitutional Court has begun hearing a landmark case that could see five opposition parties banned following a legal challenge by t...
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has arrived in Norway for talks about the Russia-Ukraine war. He is expected to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump's Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, who arrived in Oslo earlier. Witkoff will also meet European officials.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said regional issues should be resolved through diplomacy and blamed the United States for insecurity and tensions in the Strait of Hormuz, speaking at a joint news conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday.
Yemen's Houthis have denied targeting the holy city of Medina on Wednesday adding that they have not conducted any military operations towards Saudi Arabia either, denying earlier comments from the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.
U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff is meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg, with discussions focused on the war in Ukraine and the prospects for progress in ongoing diplomatic efforts.
French authorities imposed local curfews in parts of Paris, Lille and Nice on Monday after a weekend of riots and looting linked to nationwide anti-government protests, as the government faced mounting criticism over security failures.
U.S. federal prosecutors have charged six people over an alleged scheme that arranged hundreds of fraudulent marriages in Massachusetts to help immigrants living in the country illegally obtain green cards and, potentially, citizenship.
Türkiye, Qatar, Pakistan and Indonesia have signed a new defence industry agreement in Doha, bringing existing military projects under a shared framework as Turkish defence exports reach record highs.
British PM Andy Burnham has rejected calls to reconsider the UK’s ban on Palestine Action, insisting that the decision was based on evidence and had undergone parliamentary scrutiny. He said on Wednesday that he would not comment further while legal proceedings remain ongoing.
Russia has released Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old retired American teacher from Michigan held for more than four years after being detained by Russian forces in eastern Ukraine.
U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff is meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg, with discussions focused on the war in Ukraine and the prospects for progress in ongoing diplomatic efforts.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment