Hundreds of international students, including Nigerians, may be forced to leave the United States due to an intensified crackdown on student visas under the Trump administration.
Reports suggest that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been revoking visas without warning, even for minor infractions.
Immigration attorney Dustin Baxter, who represents over 100 affected students, claims visa cancellations are occurring arbitrarily.
“Not only would they revoke the person’s student visa – even if there was no conviction, if there was just an arrest, and sometimes there wasn’t even an arrest, there was just an encounter and maybe a ticket – they would revoke the student visa,” Baxter told a major US network on Saturday.
Some students only discovered their visa had been revoked when contacted by their schools.
Stanford University reported that four students and two recent graduates lost their visas, but the school only found out during a routine check of the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) on April 4.
ICE Bypassing Universities
Previously, designated school officers initiated visa revocations in SEVIS. However, Jeff Joseph, president-elect of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, says Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is now bypassing schools and taking direct action.
One of the most publicized cases is that of Tufts University doctoral student Rümeysa Öztürk, who was detained by immigration agents shortly after her visa was revoked.
Surveillance footage presented in court reportedly showed Öztürk “shrieking in fear and confusion” as officers took her away.
The Trump administration has defended its policy saying it was following legal provisions that allow visas to be revoked on national security or foreign policy grounds.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio referenced a clause that permits visa cancellations if an individual’s presence poses “serious foreign policy consequences.”
A State Department statement reinforced the government’s authority, warning: “We continuously check visa holders… and we will revoke their visas and deport them if they don’t [follow the rules].”
The crackdown has caused panic among international students, among who many could unexpectedly deported, detained or their studies interrupted—even in cases where formal charges were never filed.
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