The US will also “enhance scrutiny of all future visa applications” from China and Hong Kong, the State Department said.
The United States is “actively revoking” visas for Chinese students studying in the country, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced.
Rubio released a shocking move in the X post and a State Department statement released Wednesday.
“Under President Trump’s leadership, the US State Department will work with the Department of Homeland Security to actively revoke visas for Chinese students.
“We will also amend visa standards to enhance scrutiny of all future visa applications from the People’s Republic of China and the People’s Republic of Hong Kong,” he added.
China is the second largest country of origin in the United States, after India. Chinese students accounted for about a quarter of all foreign students in the US between 2023 and 2024 school years, totaling over 270,000.
Correspondent Al Jazeera at Beijing Katrinayu said many Chinese students in the US came from elite backgrounds and “it’s very likely to have Communist Party ties.”
“We have 90 million Communists here in China. Most of them have no role in the government, many of them are ordinary people,” she said. “The students in those families may not be members themselves, but are likely to have ties to the Communist Party.”
The Chinese government has not yet responded to the Trump administration’s moves publicly.
The US will begin revoking visas for Chinese students, including Chinese Communist Party ties and students studying in important fields.
– Secretary Marco Rubio (@secrubio) May 28, 2025
The actions against Chinese students come at the time of increasing friction between Washington and Beijing after Trump accused China of exploiting the US with trade and sparking a tariff war when he returned to the White House in a second term.
U.S. House Republicans believe that the relationship between the US and Chinese academic institutions is also a threat to national security.
Earlier this month, Michigan Senators John Mouenar and Tim Wahlberg pressed U.S. Duke University to end their ties with Uhan University in China regarding concerns over technology transfer.
Moolenaar and Walberg argued that the education partnership created “a direct pipeline between US innovation and the Chinese military industrial complex.”
Trump administration’s attack on higher education
Rubio’s presentation adds to the uncertainty that is more common for international students in the US. International students in the US have faced escalating surveillance over the past few months amid the administration’s wider attacks on higher education institutions.
On Tuesday, the White House also temporarily suspended the processing of visas for foreign students and ordered embassies and consulates not to allow additional student or exchange visas “until further guidance is issued.”
The State Department also said it would “issued guidance on an expanded social media review of all such applications.”
Last week, the Trump administration revoked Harvard’s approval to register international students. The federal judge temporarily blocked the movement. This corresponds to the conflict between the White House and Harvard over the school’s pro-Palestinian protests and handling of diversity programs.
This latest crackdown on foreign students comes as Rubio and the State Department have attempted to withdraw hundreds of educational visas for minor legal violations, political advocacy, or incitemental speeches by visiting students.
Many of these targets for visa revocation and arrest were students who participated in pro-Palestinian and anti-Gaza war protests that erupted on campuses across the United States since the Israeli onslaught on Palestinian territory.
Others targeted by the US government are those who have indirect ties with Palestine and those who support the Palestinian cause on social media.
The Trump administration has accused them of spreading anti-Semitism on campus.
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