US visa approvals fall 11% in 2025; India, China among hardest hit

US issued 0.25 million fewer visas in Jan-Aug 2025, with India among the hardest hit as policy changes reshaped immigration flows

The United States issued about a quarter million fewer visas in the first eight months of 2025 compared with the same period in 2024, with countries such as India among those most affected, as policy changes under President Donald Trump reshaped legal immigration flows.

 

From January to August 2025, the US State Department approved 11 per cent, or around 0.25 million fewer, permanent resident and temporary visas than a year earlier, according to data released in early March. These visas are issued to students, workers and family members of US citizens and legal residents. The decline does not include tourist visas, which also fell over the same period.

   

India and China see sharp declines in US visa

 

India and China were among the countries most affected. The US issued fewer temporary visas to international students, cultural exchange visitors, and fiancés and spouses of US citizens from these countries.

 

Overall, visas issued to Chinese and Indian nationals dropped by about 84,000 compared with the same period in 2024. There were also sharp declines for Afghan and Cuban nationals following the introduction of new travel restrictions. Visas fell by more than 10,000 for citizens of the Philippines and Vietnam.

 

Permanent US visas also fall

 

Approvals for permanent residency, or green cards, also declined. The steepest drops were seen in visas for workers, certain relatives, and Iraqi and Afghan nationals who had worked with the US military.

 

Across a group of 61 countries that had at least 5,000 visa approvals between January and August 2024, only seven saw an increase in visa numbers in 2025.

 

Policy changes and processing issues

 

Several policy shifts appear to have contributed to the decline:

 

• A travel ban introduced in June covering 19 countries, including several majority-Muslim nations and Cuba

• A three-week pause on student and exchange visa interviews

• Expanded vetting, including checks of applicants’ social media accounts

• Fewer State Department staff available to process applications following federal workforce cuts

 

At the same time, the White House defended the approach.

 

“President Trump was elected with a resounding mandate to put American citizens first and every policy decision he’s made has reflected that priority,” said Abigail Jackson. 

 

Business and tourist visas also dip

 

Business and tourism visas, which include travel for leisure and short-term work visits, fell by about 3.4 per cent in the first eight months of 2025. This amounts to a drop of nearly 200,000 visas compared with the same period in 2024.

 

Students among the hardest hit

 

International students saw one of the steepest declines. Student visas dropped by more than 30 per cent during the period.

 

The fall follows remarks by Marco Rubio in May that the State Department would “aggressively revoke” visas of students from China. Later in the summer, the department said it had cancelled 6,000 student visas over alleged crimes and overstays.

 

Exchange visitor visas, often used by foreign medical residents, also declined by nearly 30,000.

 

Mixed trends in family visas

 

Visas for family members were generally lower, particularly for spouses and fiancés seeking temporary entry.

 

However, permanent green cards issued to immediate relatives of US citizens, including young children, parents and spouses, rose by 6 per cent compared with the same period in 2024. These categories are not subject to annual caps.

 

In contrast, capped family visa categories, such as those for adult children and siblings of US citizens, fell by more than 27 per cent, or about 44,000.

 

The visa data adds to a wider picture of falling immigration into the United States. According to estimates by the Brookings Institution, more immigrants left the country than entered last year for the first time in at least 50 years.

 

That trend has had economic implications. Jerome H. Powell said last week that weaker immigration had contributed to softer job creation in recent months.