Ranjani Srinivasa, a Fulbright recipient from India who was pursuing a doctoral degree in urban planning at Columbia University, fled to Canada after authorities revoked her student visa and showed up at her campus apartment on March 7.
Two weeks later in Somerville, Massachusetts, Rumeysa Ozturk a Turkish citizen and graduate student at Tufts University was taken into federal custody after she drew the attention of a right wing group that says it combats antisemitism on college campuses.
Those cases and others unfolding amid president Trump’s campaign to deport immigrants have cast a spotlight on student visas, which allows foreign nationals to enter the US for full time study.
International students at universities across the country are afraid of being targeted. They are terrified, here is what we know about the legal protections afforded student visa holders, their vulnerability and the power the federal government possesses to revoke their visas.
Visa Basics
International students typically have what is known as an F-1 visa, and they must meet and maintain certain criteria that are set by the federal government and the host school.
Typically, students must enroll in an academic programme at a college or university that has been approved by the immigration and customs enforcement agency. Those studying under F-1 visa generally cannot work off campus during their first academic year and must show that they have enough money to afford to live in the US during the entire time they are studying there. F-1 visas typically are issued for the duration of a student stay in the US and can be extended if the coursework or research takes longer than planned.
Student visas are mutually beneficial for the international students and their host schools providing the institutions with cultural enrichment and billions in tuition dollars. According to a study by Nafsa, the 1.1 million foreign students at US colleges and universities contributed 42. 8 billion to the nation’s economy during the 2023-24 academic year.
In return international students receive a typical American college experience, one that has sometimes involved the longstanding tradition of students speaking out against opinions, policies or politics they oppose.
New York University has the most foreign students of any UA school. Followed by Northeastern University in Boston then by Columbia and Arizona State University according to the open doors report compiled by the Institute of International at Education a non profit organization that focuses on international students exchange programs and conducts an annual census of such students in the US.
Students from India makeup the largest proportion of International students at 29 percent according to the report followed closely by students from China at 25 percent and then by students from South Korea, at 4 percent. Canadian students were next at 3 percent.
Legal Protections
Visa holding students have the same basic constitutional protection as US citizens. Including the first amendment right to free speech, said Joshua Bardavid an immigration lawyer in New York.
But those rights can be superseded by the federal government in some circumstances including officials screening foreigners at the border. The speech of people on student visas is still protected but it doesn’t always protect their immigration status.
International students are especially vulnerable to deportation because of the temporary nature of their legal status. Joseph Lento, a lawyer who regular;y advises foreign students said that a student visa status could be abruptly suspended or revoked if immigration officials determined they were not in compliance.
Last month he told the reporters that the state department under his direction had revoked the visas of possibly more than 300 people – students, visitors and others and was continuing to revoke visas daily.
On friday ted mitchell the president of the american council on education a membership association that includes many colleges and universities, wrote a letter to Rubio arguing hm to better explain the government recent actions.
The government has the authority to revoke the legal status of people who it believes are affiliated with terrorism. That power expanded in the 1990s at the height of the nation’s tough on crime policies and then broadened once again after the September 11 attacks.
Even foreign born students who are lawful permanent students residents or who are nationalised citizens risk losing their rights.
Why Revoke?
Typically, international students lose their legal status when they break the rules of their visa programs such as by working in the US when they are not allowed to or by having their grades slip to the point that they are no longer in good academic standing. At NYU, students who maintain a grade point average about 2.0 are regarded as being in good standing. Foreign students can also lose their visas if they are considered a public danger.
Historically it has been rare for students to be deported because of acts of political expression.
On college campuses across the country administrators and faculty members have expressed concern about students’ ability to share their opinions without risking their legal status.
Revocation Appeal
Students seldom appeal the revocations of their visas in court because the odds of success are slim. Lendo stress that because visas were granted at the direction of US officials, lawful activity that drew negative attention could result in scrutiny from immigration officials or academic leaders.
Manu students he said do not release than an arrest or even disciplinary action from their school can jeopardize their immigration status regardless of whether they are found guilty.
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