US visa not assured, says Trump admin, signalling harder path for students

US secretary of state Marco Rubio said no student is guaranteed a US visa and consular officers can refuse applications on several grounds, even as Indian enrolments continue to grow

Don't want to miss the best from Business Standard?

US secretary of state Marco Rubio on Friday said that no student is guaranteed a visa to the United States, stressing that consular officers have full authority to approve or refuse applications. He made the remarks during a conversation with American conservative commentator Ben Shapiro on The Ben Shapiro Show.

 

Visa approval is not automatic

 

Rubio said there is a common misunderstanding around how the system works. “No one. It’s not a constitutional right. It’s not guaranteed by law. Every day, consular officers deny visas for all kinds of reasons, suspicion of overstaying, criminal associations, whatever it may be. Visas are denied worldwide daily. No one is entitled to one,” he said.

 

He added that many applicants believe entry is assured unless an officer finds a clear issue, which is not how the process is designed. “That’s not true. The burden of proof is the other way around,” he said.

 

Security concerns and revocation

 

Rubio said national security remains central to the government’s approach. He noted that support for groups like Hamas, or behaviour seen as contrary to United States interests, would likely lead to refusal. “We probably wouldn’t let them in, and we shouldn’t,” he said.

 

He also said that visas can be revoked if new information surfaces after a student has entered the country. “If we later discover information that would have led to denial in the first place, that’s grounds for revocation,” he said.

 

Rubio referred to Donald Trump’s “America First” stance while describing the government’s discretion. “It’s not in the national interest, or our foreign policy or national security interest, to bring people onto our campuses who aren’t just studying but are also promoting or excusing terrorist organisations committed to violence and destruction.”

 

He continued, “So we have the right to deny visas before entry and revoke them after entry if someone’s presence undermines our national security or interests. That’s exactly what we intend to do.”

 

India’s student numbers continue to rise

 

The Trump administration’s tighter approach comes even as India remains the largest source of international students in the United States. Data from the Institute of International Education shows that more than 360,000 students from India were in the country during the latest period, marking a 9.5 per cent rise from the previous year.

 

The Open Doors 2025 Report recorded 1.17 million international students in the United States in 2024–25, up 5 per cent from the previous cycle. China and South Korea followed India as the next largest groups.

 

Growing strain on Indian applicants

 

Dr Nirav Patel, an assistant professor at Navrachana University, told Business Standard that Indian families are finding the process more demanding as refusal rates climb. “Consequently, families are now dealing with significant documentation, multiple interviews, increased costs for travel and processing, and greater travel and processing costs. With the hopes of future employment opportunities compensating for the costs, students are financially taking out larger loans and withdrawing more from their savings. Some also accept offers from colleges they once considered less preferred because they seem ‘safer’ from a visa standpoint,” he said.