A coalition of unions and advocacy organisations has sued the Trump administration in an attempt to stop new visa rules that would place stricter limits on how long international students, exchange visitors and foreign journalists can remain in the United States.
The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday, challenges a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) rule scheduled to take effect on September 15.
Under the new policy, people holding F visas for international study, J visas for exchange programmes and I visas for foreign media work would be admitted for defined periods rather than, in many cases, being allowed to remain for the duration of their studies, programmes or assignments.
International students and exchange visitors would generally be admitted for the length of their programmes, but for a maximum of four years at a time. Those who need additional time would have to apply for an extension.
The rule also significantly reduces the admission period for foreign journalists.
Most journalists holding I status would be allowed to remain for up to 240 days, compared with arrangements that can currently permit stays lasting several years. Journalists holding passports issued by China’s mainland, excluding Hong Kong and Macau SAR passport holders, would generally be limited to 90 days.
The affected journalists could request extensions of up to 240 days, or 90 days for the specified Chinese passport holders, provided the additional period does not exceed the length of their assignments.
The groups challenging the rule warned that the changes could have serious consequences for universities, international students and scholars.
“They will discourage foreign students and other nonimmigrants from coming to the United States, repelled by the intolerable prospect of losing lawful immigration status partway through their studies,” the groups said in their lawsuit.
The new rule does not require students to finish their academic programmes within four years. Those enrolled in longer courses can apply for an extension, although the policy introduces additional restrictions concerning transfers and changes to educational objectives, including measures affecting some graduate students.
The coalition also warned that US universities could face financial losses if the new requirements discourage international enrolment. Foreign students often pay higher tuition fees and have access to fewer scholarships than domestic students.
“Students will lose opportunities, schools will lose talent, and the public will lose billions of dollars of economic contributions supported by one of the United States’ top exports: education,” the complaint stated.
DHS has rejected the lawsuit as “performative” and said the new restrictions are intended to address immigration fraud and strengthen oversight.
The department said fixed admission periods would allow immigration officials to regularly determine whether visa holders were continuing to comply with the conditions attached to their status.
“If the media really cared about legitimate international students, they would be thanking President Trump for cracking down on the rampant fraud to ensure only those truly intending to study in the United States are given the privilege,” a DHS spokesperson said in a statement to Reuters.
NewsGuild-CWA President Jon Schleuss, whose organisation represents thousands of media workers in the US, criticised the restrictions on foreign journalists.
“In addition to attacking international students and scholars, the Trump administration is again attacking journalists by also shortening the duration of I Visas, which support the important work of international journalists working in the United States,” Schleuss said.
“Our First Amendment makes it clear that the United States is supposed to be a champion of a free press, not an opponent. These rule changes are just another attempt by this administration to chill reporting done by talented journalists.”
He added: “Our democracy depends on journalism and journalism dependents on journalists of all stripes. We are proud to stand with other partners and fight these illegal rule changes intended to weaken our democracy.”
DHS has previously argued that requiring foreigners seeking to remain in the US for extended periods to undergo regular assessments would give authorities “proper oversight” and help reduce the number of people staying in the country on visas.
