In a sharp rebuke of the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement policies, US Representative Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) has demanded a detailed explanation for the sudden revocation of student visas and legal statuses of international students—many of whom were affected in the middle of the academic year.
Jayapal, the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement, sent a letter co-signed by more than 130 Democratic lawmakers, urging the Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to disclose the number of student visas cancelled and clarify the legal basis for the revocations.
“This appears to be an attack on student visa holders writ-large, and not just on those who hold policy positions with which the administration disagrees,” Jayapal wrote.
The issue first gained attention when the government revoked the visas of several hundred international students and withdrew the legal status of thousands more in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS). SEVIS is a critical tool that enables educational institutions to verify the immigration status of foreign students. These sudden changes—often occurring just weeks before students were set to graduate—sparked chaos and uncertainty on campuses nationwide.
Despite recent efforts to restore some visa statuses in the federal database, the situation remains unresolved. Dozens of students are still in immigration detention, and nearly 100 lawsuits have been filed across the country as students try to regain legal status.
The Trump administration claims the revocations stem from students’ alleged participation in protests or inclusion in law enforcement databases like the National Crime Information Center—despite many of the charges being dropped or unproven.
In court filings, the government said it is developing a new system for student immigration oversight and pledged to pause further changes to SEVIS statuses until its rollout. Still, Jayapal expressed concern that ongoing uncertainty will deter international students and damage US higher education.
“Heavy-handed and politically motivated immigration enforcement is turning university campuses into places of fear, rather than learning,” she warned.
Jayapal, who represents Washington’s 7th Congressional District and is the first Indian-American woman elected to the US House, has long championed immigration reform.