US to revoke visas of many Chinese students enrolled in 'critical fields'

The announcement added to the uncertainty for international students aiming to study in the US, who have faced intense scrutiny from the Trump administration

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday (local time) announced that President Donald Trump's administration will work to "aggressively revoke" visas of Chinese students.

 

According to the New York Times, visas for those Chinese students will also be cancelled who have ties with the Chinese Communist Party or are enrolled in "critical fields". Rubio noted that the US State Department was "revising" visa criteria to "enhance scrutiny" of all future applicants from China and Hong Kong.

 

Although Rubio's statement did not clarify what "critical fields" mean, the report suggests that the phrase most likely refers to research in physical sciences.

 

 

Rubio's announcement added to the uncertainty for international students, who have been aiming to study in the US, and are now facing intense scrutiny from the Trump administration.

 

According to an Associated Press report, a cable was sent on Tuesday (local time) to the US embassies and consulates, in which Rubio halted the scheduling of new visa interviews for international students as the department prepares guidelines for increased vetting of their activity on social media.

 

It is worth noting that China is the second-largest country to send international students to the US, and many US universities rely on the tuition fees paid by these Chinese and other international students for a substantial part of their annual revenue.

 

The announcement by Rubio comes days after the Trump administration moved to block Harvard University from enrolling any new international students, a decision that is currently on hold, pending a lawsuit.

 

Chinese students in the US

 

While it is unclear how the State Department and Department of Homeland Security will revoke the visas for Chinese students, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) is aggressively detaining students whose visas or residency status have been cancelled.

 

The New York Times report suggests that before the Trump administration passed this order, members of China's Communist Party could send their kids to study at US universities. In the past few decades, top party officials sent their children, including China's President Xi Jinping, who sent his daughter Xi Mingze, to attend Harvard under a pseudonym in the early 2010s.

 

Previously, in 2020, the Trump administration also tried to cancel visas for thousands of Chinese graduates who had ties with the military universities in China.

 

According to a report from the Institute of International Education published last year, nearly 275,000 students came from China