Several international students whose visas were recently revoked have filed lawsuits against the Trump administration, alleging they were denied due process and left vulnerable to detention and deportation amid sudden changes to their legal status.
The visa terminations have affected students at prominent institutions across the United States, including Harvard University, Stanford University, the University of Maryland, and Ohio State University, as well as smaller liberal arts colleges. In lawsuits filed against the Department of Homeland Security, the students argue that their legal residency was revoked without proper justification or notification.
Attorneys for the ACLU of Michigan, representing students from Wayne State University and the University of Michigan, claim the government has initiated a nationwide policy—official or otherwise—of mass terminations. “The timing and uniformity of these terminations leave little question,” the lawsuit states.
Visa cancellations are typically based on a range of factors, but colleges report that students are being penalised for minor infractions such as traffic violations, some of which occurred years ago. In several cases, the students say they were not informed of the reason for the revocation.
The revocations have prompted legal responses across the country. In New Hampshire, a federal judge recently issued a restraining order after the legal status of Xiaotian Liu, a Dartmouth College student from China, was terminated. Similar challenges are underway in courts in Georgia and California.
While the Trump administration has defended high-profile deportation cases by citing involvement in pro-Palestinian activism, college officials say the majority of visa cancellations appear unrelated to protests. The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to requests for comment.
Michelle Mittelstadt of the Migration Policy Institute said the wave of student visa revocations is part of a broader pattern of increased immigration scrutiny. “What you’re seeing with international students is really a piece of the much greater scrutiny the Trump administration is bringing to bear on immigrants,” she said.
International students typically enter the United States on F-1 visas, which require proof of financial stability, full-time academic enrolment, and limited work activity. Once in the country, students’ legal status is overseen by the Student and Exchange Visitor Program under the Department of Homeland Security.
Recently, some college officials discovered that students’ legal residency had been revoked through routine checks of a Homeland Security database, with no prior notification. In the past, legal statuses were updated after the government was informed that a student had left the institution.
Losing legal residency status carries serious consequences. Students are typically ordered to leave the United States immediately and may face detention if they remain. Several have already departed to avoid arrest, leaving their studies behind.
The developments have raised concerns among education leaders. Sarah Spreitzer, vice president of government relations at the American Council on Education, said the abrupt enforcement approach is unprecedented. “The threat of this very quick removal is something that’s new,” she said.
Colleges have urged the federal government to provide clarity on the revocations and are advising international students to carry immigration documentation at all times. University of Massachusetts Boston Chancellor Marcelo Suárez-Orozco described the situation as “unprecedented,” noting the university had seen the legal status of students and recent graduates revoked.
“These are unprecedented times,” Suárez-Orozco said. “We must be thoughtful in how we best prepare, protect, and respond.”
