Indians hard hit as US student visas decline by a fifth from last year

Indian nationals spot alteration of 45 percent compared to aforesaid play past twelvemonth arsenic US clamps down connected overseas students.

The fig of student visas issued by the United States has dropped by astir one-fifth compared to the aforesaid one-month play past year, with India seeing a melodramatic diminution amid restrictive policies pursued by United States President Donald Trump.

Data from the International Trade Commission recovered that the US issued astir 313,138 pupil visas successful August, erstwhile studies typically statesman astatine US universities, a 19.1 percent driblet compared to August 2024.

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For Indian students, the largest root of overseas students studying successful the US, the driblet was 44.5 percent during that period. Visa issuances besides dropped for students from China, albeit astatine a little rate.

Several Muslim-majority countries besides saw monolithic declines, with pupil visas for Iranians dropping by 86 percent. The figures bash not correspond wide numbers of overseas students attending US universities, galore of whom stay connected antecedently issued visas.

The driblet comes arsenic the Trump administration has pursued a restrictive attack to immigration, portion utilizing backing to exert increasing governmental unit connected US universities.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has revoked thousands of pupil visas, citing violations of US law, information successful protests, oregon successful immoderate cases, disapproval of Israel. The targeting has been successful parallel with pro-Israel groups that show and surveil assemblage students progressive successful pro-Palestine activism.

In June, Rubio besides ordered the impermanent suspension of each pupil visa processing successful bid to enact greater oversight implicit pupil societal media profiles.

Those vetting applications were told to look for “any indications of hostility toward the citizens, culture, government, institutions, oregon founding principles of the United States”.

However, the administration’s messaging towards definite countries has not ever been consistent.

After initially vowing to restrict a ample information of Chinese students seeking to survey successful the US, Trump told reporters successful August that helium planned to admit 600,000 Chinese students into the state to study.

The fig was treble the fig of Chinese students presently studying successful the US.

“We’re going to allow, it’s precise important, 600,000 students. It’s precise important,” Trump said astatine the time.