US withdraws visa curbs on students
Trump administration rescinds policy that prompted string of lawsuits from universities, states
The administration of US President Donald Trump has rescinded a policy that would have barred foreign students from staying in the US if they took online-only classes for the fall semester.
The decision came after Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced the policy on July 6, under which international students would not be allowed to stay or come to the country if their schools only operated online due to COVID-19.
The policy prompted a string of lawsuits brought by universities and a coalition of 17 states. Harvard University, with overseas students comprising over 20 percent of the student body, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, whose foreign undergraduates make up nearly 30 percent of enrollment, were the first to file suit.
The institutions claim the regulation is “arbitrary and capricious”, arguing that the agency is not considering the health of students, faculty or staff members and has not taken into account the “reality” of the COVID-19 pandemic continuing.
A dozen “friend of the court” briefs were filed in support of the Harvard and MIT litigation by hundreds of universities and some of the largest US tech companies, including Google, Facebook and Twitter, arguing that the policy would harm their businesses. Such briefs are often filed by parties not involved in a case but with interests in its outcome.
US District Judge Allison Burroughs said on July 14 that the government had agreed with Harvard and MIT to rescind the policy.
“President Trump’s arbitrary actions put the health and safety of our students and communities across the country at risk,” said Xavier Becerra, California attorney general, following the announcement of the decision. California is among the 17 states that had filed suit.
“The Trump administration appears to have seen the harm of its student visa directive, but it shouldn’t take lawsuits and widespread outcry for them to do their job,” he said.
US visa requirements typically do not allow international students to take more than one course — or three credits — online each semester. In March, ICE waived those requirements when the pandemic forced colleges nationwide to switch to virtual instruction.
On July 2, the American Council on Education and 38 other groups wrote to the US State Department and the Department of Homeland Security asking for flexibility in the next academic year. But four days later, ICE decided to require foreign students to transfer to institutions that offer some in-person instruction or leave the US.
The July 14 agreement reinstates the policy implemented in March, which allows international students to take all their classes online and legally remain in the country amid the pandemic.
The cancellation of the ICE directive “demonstrates the importance of international students to the United States and shows that together with one voice, all of higher education, the business community and many others across our nation are making it clear that these students continue to be welcome here”, American Council on Education President Ted Mitchell said in a statement.
“International students are an extraordinary benefit not just to American higher education but to our entire nation, resulting in a wealth of new ideas, cultural connections, cutting-edge technology and lifesaving medical advances, including in the fight against COVID-19,” Mitchell said.
He also called the economic benefit that comes with the roughly 1 million international students in the US immense, yielding about $41 billion annually and resulting in more than 450,000 US jobs.