Indian Students in the US Have Their Visas Cancelled on Minor Offences and Campus Activism
There has been a recent and worrying trend where dozens of Indian students in the United States have been requested to self-deport after their F-1 student visas were suddenly cancelled. The reasons for these actions have been cited as minor criminal offences and campus activism, and this has caused worry among international students and legal professionals.
Designated School Officials (DSOs) from different academic institutions notified the impacted students by email that their visa status had been cancelled. With their files deleted from the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), their Form I-20, Employment Authorization Document (EAD), and general legal status in the U.S. have been invalidated.
The grounds for cancellation of the visa differ. In most cases, students have had their licenses revoked for what would appear to be minor offences, such as speeding, running red lights, or operating a vehicle with a learner’s permit without an accompanying licensed supervisor. Other examples include more severe charges, such as shoplifting and alcohol-related offences that were previously legally settled. One such example is a Texas student who was arrested for stealing merchandise valued at $144. Even though the case was dropped because of the student’s clean record and full cooperation with the authorities, the student was still given an order to self-deport.
DSOs have instructed students to make arrangements to exit the country immediately, telling them their F-1 visas are now invalid. Legal experts, including one Texas attorney handling about 30 similar cases, have noted that the cancellation of student visas for such lesser transgressions is extremely rare and with little precedent in the past.
These cancellations of visas seem to be going on quietly. Foreign nationals who are students at elite institutions such as Harvard, Tufts, and Stanford have had their student visas revoked, reportedly without public official statements. Students and recent graduates at various University of California campuses, such as UCLA, UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC San Diego, and UC Santa Cruz, have been similarly targeted. At least two students have sued in federal court, alleging their visas were revoked without due process over technical legal infractions like traffic violations.
The crackdown is not confined to criminal cases. Some students have had their visas cancelled for engaging in political or campus activism. Badar Khan Suri, an Indian researcher of conflict at Georgetown University, was arrested on March 17 after charges of antisemitic comments and links to Hamas emerged. Suri denied the charges, saying that he was being unfairly targeted because his wife was Palestinian.
Another Indian scholar, Ranjani Srinivasan, self-deported in March after her visa was cancelled. The Department of Homeland Security gave the reason for this action as her attendance at pro-Palestinian demonstrations at Columbia University.
The U.S. State Department is said to be examining the social media presence of foreign students as part of its vetting process. This is also being done to new F (academic), M (vocational), and J (exchange) visa applicants. Consequently, people can be denied student visas on the basis of their internet activities even before they arrive in the United States.
As per the 2023–24 academic year figures released in the Open Doors report by the Institute of International Education (IIE), more than 1.1 million international students were studying in U.S. institutions. Of these, approximately 3.32 lakh (332,000) were Indian citizens. The recent events can now affect the dreams of numerous students who intend to study in the U.S.
Students who were impacted are being encouraged to obtain legal counsel forthwith, particularly if their offence was over one year old, in order to discuss potential legal solutions or reinstatement.
