US Cancels 85,000 Visas in 2025: Student and Criminal Cases Soar
US revokes 85,000 visas since January 2025, including students. Immigration and security policies tighten as continuous vetting expands nationwide.
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The U.S. State Department on Tuesday revealed that since January, a total of 85,000 visas have been canceled, which was a clear indication of the Trump administration's rigorous immigration enforcement and a strong emphasis on national security screenings.
Accompanying the post on X, the department also referred to the crackdown and presented a picture of the ex-president Trump with the slogan: “Make America Safe Again.” The message read: “85,000 visa revocations since January. President Trump and Secretary Rubio follow one very straightforward order and they are not going to stop for a long time.”
The total number of canceled visas according to the official of the state department quoted by CNN includes more than 8,000 student visas, which is squarely 2 times more than last year's figure. The official indicated that almost 50% of repeals were due to criminal acts such as DUI, assault and theft which are viewed as a direct threat to public safety.
Some other reasons for the revocation have not been completely made public but previous press articles mention cases of visa overstays, suspected criminal activity and terrorism support. CNN has pointed out that international students who are taking part in pro-Palestinian protests on-campus have been particularly targeted and some of them are facing accusations of being anti-Semitic or being associated with extremist organizations.
The cancellation of the visas in large numbers has happened at the same time as the administration's decision to implement continuous vetting for the country's 55 million visa holders, which is a further step. This process allows the revocation of visas at any time on the basis of the disclosure of new information. At present, the countries under travel restrictions are 19 but Kristi Noem, the Homeland Security Secretary has advised to increase the list to 30-32 countries, considering a recent incident in Washington D.C. when an Afghan national shot and injured two national guards in a shooting.
As a result, more immigration measures have been implemented in recent days.
USCIS is reevaluating the green card applications of the persons from the 'countries of concern'.
The asylum verdicts have been put on hold for an indeterminate time.
Those Afghans who helped the U.S. army are still not allowed to get visas, according to the State Department.
The officials pointed out that all these steps are taken as a part of a larger plan for national security that is meant to minimize the risks posed by foreign nationals with criminal or extremist connections.
