Over 200 international students 'trapped' in US are suing Trump administration

Source: The Hill

10/06/25 6:00 AM ET


Over 200 international students caught up in the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown are suing the State Department to get their visas reinstated, court documents reviewed by The Hill show. Although the Trump administration restored students’ records in the Student Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) after judges ruled in favor of students across dozens of lawsuits, the government has continued to withhold many students’ visas.

SEVIS records allow students to stay in the U.S. after entering, while visas are needed to freely leave and return to the U.S. — meaning international students with revoked visas are likely to be denied re-entry, even if they are legally permitted to study in the country through SEVIS.

“I can’t visit home because of my visa revocation,” an international student, who requested anonymity fearing repercussions, told The Hill. “It feels like I’m trapped here.” Lawyers told The Hill that some students who had left the U.S. were already facing issues trying to come back to the country, despite having their SEVIS statuses restored. Several of their clients had to reapply for visas only to be denied.

That’s left other students in the same situation effectively “not being able to travel,” said Charles Kuck, an attorney heading a lawsuit challenging visa terminations against the government. “You can’t go home to see your mom who’s dying, you can’t go home for your sister’s wedding, you can’t go home for break, you can’t study abroad,” he said.

Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/education/5537283-lawsuits-international-students-visas/