WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump’s administration moved yesterday to impose stricter limits on how long foreign students and journalists can stay in the United States, the latest bid to tighten legal immigration in the country.
Under a proposed change, foreigners would not be allowed to stay for more than four years on student visas in the United States.
Foreign journalists would be limited to stays of just 240 days, although they could apply to extend by additional 240-day periods.
The United States, until now, has generally issued visas for the duration of a student’s educational program or a journalist’s assignment, although no nonimmigrant visas are valid for more than 10 years.
The proposed changes were published in the Federal Register, initiating a short period for public comment before it can go into effect.
Trump’s Department of Homeland Security alleged that an unspecified number of foreigners were indefinitely extending their studies so they could remain in the country as “’forever’ students”.
“For too long, past administrations have allowed foreign students and other visa holders to remain in the US virtually indefinitely, posing safety risks, costing untold amount of taxpayer dollars and disadvantaging US citizens,” the department said in a press statement Wednesday.
The department did not explain how US citizens and taxpayers were hurt by international students, who according to Commerce Department statistics contributed more than $50 billion to the US economy in 2023.
The United States welcomed more than 1.1 million international students in the 2023-24 academic year, more than any other country, providing a crucial source of revenue as foreigners generally pay full tuition.
A group representing leaders of US colleges and universities denounced the latest move as a needless bureaucratic hurdle that intrudes on academic decisionmaking and could further deter potential students who would otherwise contribute to research and job creation.
The announcement came as universities were starting their academic years with many reporting lower enrollments of international students after earlier actions by the Trump administration. – AFP
