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Articles Posted in F-1 Visa

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Harvard Travel Ban Blocked by Federal Judge

Earlier this month President Trump had signed an Executive Order suspending the entry of all nonimmigrants and exchange visitors attending Harvard University, for a period of 6 months starting June 4th (the effective date of the proclamation).

Those affected by the executive order were F, J, and M visa holders outside of the United States as of the date of the proclamation. The suspension did not apply to nonimmigrants entering the United States to attend other universities.

Shortly after the executive order was issued, a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction, temporarily halting its enforcement until the court can rule on the merits of the case.

Following the court’s actions, the State Department ordered embassies and consulates around the world to resume visa processing for Harvard University students and exchange visitors.

As a result, Harvard students can breathe easier. While the preliminary injunction remains in effect, consulates are barred from denying visas to Harvard students and exchange visitors, and visa holders attending Harvard cannot be refused entry to the United States.

For more information, please click here.

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We are pleased to report that today the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs published the July 2025 Visa Bulletin.

In this blog post, we breakdown the movement of the employment-based and family-sponsored categories in the coming month.

USCIS Adjustment of Status

For employment-based preference categories, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has confirmed it will continue to use the Final Action Dates chart to determine filing eligibility for adjustment of status to permanent residence in the month of July.

For family-sponsored preference categories, USCIS will also continue to use the Dates for Filing chart to determine filing eligibility for adjustment of status to permanent residence in the month of July.

Please click here for more information.

Highlights of the July 2025 Visa Bulletin

At a Glance

What can we expect to see in the month of July?

Employment-Based Categories

Final Action Advancements

EB-1 Aliens of extraordinary ability, Outstanding Professors and Researchers, and Certain Multinational Managers or Executives

  • EB-1 China will advance by 1 week to November 15, 2022

EB-2 Members of the Professions and Aliens of Exceptional Ability

  • EB-2 China will advance by 2 weeks to December 15, 2020

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beverly-kimberly-tfiGOGEmJVI-unsplash-scaledOn June 4, 2025, President Trump continued his ongoing assault on Harvard University with a new Executive Order entitled, “Enhancing National Security by Addressing Risks at Harvard University.”

Effective June 4th, the order suspends the entry of all nonimmigrants and exchange visitors bound for Harvard University for a period of 6 months, citing national security concerns over Harvard’s failure to police foreign students and ensure that foreign nationals admitted on student and exchange visitor visas remain in compliance with Federal law.

The executive order also accuses Harvard of having extensive entanglements with foreign adversaries including China.

Who is affected?

All nonimmigrants who enter or attempt to enter the United States to begin attending Harvard University through the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) after the effective date of the proclamation (June 4, 2025).

The executive order further empowers the Secretary of State Marco Rubio to consider in his discretion whether foreign nationals who currently attend Harvard University and are in the United States pursuant to F, M, or J visas, should have their visas revoked pursuant to the proclamation.

Who is not affected?

The suspension does not impact Harvard students who are already inside the United States with a valid student visa as of the effective date of the proclamation.

The suspension also does not apply to any alien who enters the United States to attend other universities through the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP).

It also does not apply to any alien whose entry would be in the national interest, as determined by the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Homeland Security, or their designated representatives.

Impact on Harvard Students Currently in the United States

The executive order does not:

  • Restrict change or extension of status applications filed with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
  • Revoke existing visas, I-94, or STEM OPT work authorization status for students currently in the United States

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danilo-rios-bj5y_XuSm58-unsplash-scaledThe Trump administration is not letting up on its campaign to target international students applying for visas at U.S. Embassies and Consulates, beginning with Harvard University students.

On Friday May 30, 2025, the Secretary of State Marco Rubio sent an internal cable to U.S. Embassies and Consulates worldwide requiring them to “immediately begin additional vetting” for all applicants seeking a visa to travel to Harvard University “for any purpose.”

While the internal cable is not publicly available, its contents have been reviewed by several prominent media outlets including Politico and CNN.

According to their reports, the cable indicates that the State Department has adopted a new policy requiring Consulates and Embassies to review the social media accounts of all nonimmigrant visa applicants seeking to attend Harvard University, including prospective students, current students, faculty members, contractors, guest speakers, and even tourists visiting the university. This initiative, directed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio through a diplomatic cable, is set to begin immediately and serves as a pilot program that is expected to expand to other U.S. schools, colleges, and universities.

The policy specifically targets the identification of antisemitic content and antisemitic viewpoints published on online social media platforms. The cable notes, “the enhanced vetting measures described in this guidance aim at ensuring that consular officers can appropriately identify such visa applicants with histories of antisemitic harassment and violence, and to duly consider the visa eligibility under U.S. immigration law.” Notably, the cable does not specify what specifically would indicate “inadmissible antisemitism” nor does it define online activities that would render an individual ineligible for a visa.

Consular officers are instructed to conduct comprehensive screenings of applicant’s social media accounts, including those set to private. The cable notes that consular officers should determine, either in pre-screening or an interview, if the applicant is seeking to travel to Harvard, and such applicants should be refused a visa “pending review of their online presence.”

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manu-ros-wvlwZ00eIRk-unsplash-scaledIn recent days, the Trump administration has launched an aggressive campaign targeting international students studying at colleges and universities throughout the United States.

These attacks escalated Thursday last week when the administration first announced that it would be halting Harvard University’s ability to enroll international students by revoking their Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification—a certification that is necessary for U.S. schools to enroll and issue Forms I-20 to F and M international students.

The move sent shockwaves throughout the academic community because it meant Harvard could no longer enroll foreign students, and its more than 7,000 existing international students would be required to transfer or lose their legal status in the United States.

According to the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, such drastic steps were taken due to Harvard’s alleged failure to comply with Student Exchange Visa Program (SEVP) regulations, as well as “encouraging and allowing antisemitic and anti-American violence to rage on its campus and coordinating with Chinese Communist Party officials on training that undermined American national security.”

Less than 24 hours later, Harvard filed a lawsuit in federal court requesting and obtaining a temporary restraining order to block the Trump administration from cutting off its ability to enroll foreign students. The judge found that absent the court order, Harvard would “suffer immediate and irreparable injury.”

Today, that same judge granted Harvard a preliminary injunction extending Harvard’s ability to maintain its SEVP certification intact while the lawsuit moves forward in federal court. This action effectively protects Harvard’s students and allows them to remain in the United States.

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note-42883_1280-1We are pleased to report that today the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs published the June 2025 Visa Bulletin.

In this blog post, we breakdown the movement of the employment-based and family-sponsored categories in the coming month.

USCIS Adjustment of Status

For employment-based preference categories, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has confirmed it will continue to use the Final Action Dates chart to determine filing eligibility for adjustment of status to permanent residence in the month of June.

For family-sponsored preference categories, USCIS will also continue to use the Dates for Filing chart to determine filing eligibility for adjustment of status to permanent residence in the month of June.

Please click here for more information.

Highlights of the June 2025 Visa Bulletin

At a Glance

What can we expect to see in the month of June?

Employment-Based Categories

Dates for Filing Advancements

EB-2 Members of the Professions and Aliens of Exceptional Ability

  • EB-2 China will advance by 2 months to January 1, 2021
  • EB-2 All countries, except India will advance by 3.5 months to November 15, 2023

EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers

  • EB-3 China will advance by 1.2 months to December 22, 2020

EB-3 Other Workers

  • EB-3 All countries, except India and China will advance by 1 month to July 22, 2021

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Following a wave of lawsuits from international students whose visas and Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) records were terminated without prior notice, the Trump administration has suddenly changed its course.

In recent weeks, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has begun reinstating SEVIS records that were previously terminated, after seemingly recognizing that the government did not go through the appropriate channels to do so.

Over the past month, it is estimated that the State Department and ICE collectively cancelled over 300 F-1 student visas and terminated more than 4,736 SEVIS records primarily due to student encounters with law enforcement, criminal charges that were dismissed, and old misdemeanors pre-dating visa issuance. These SEVIS terminations automatically exposed students to unlawful presence in the United States, and the risk of deportation.

It was further discovered that ICE utilized AI assisted programs to screen the social media posts of F-1 international students and terminated their legal status based on antisemitic activity or alleged support for terrorist organizations such as Hamas and Hezbollah.

In response, students across the country sued the government to preserve their status, leading federal judges to issue a series of emergency orders to stop the government from cancelling visas and SEVIS records.

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may-4999078_1280We are pleased to report that today the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs published the May 2025 Visa Bulletin.

In this blog post, we breakdown the movement of the employment-based and family-sponsored categories in the coming month.

USCIS Adjustment of Status

For employment-based preference categories, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has confirmed it will continue to use the Final Action Dates chart to determine filing eligibility for adjustment of status to permanent residence in the month of May.

For family-sponsored preference categories, USCIS will also continue to use the Dates for Filing chart to determine filing eligibility for adjustment of status to permanent residence in the month of May.

Please click here for more information.

Highlights of the May 2025 Visa Bulletin

At a Glance

What can we expect to see in the month of May?

Employment-Based Categories

Dates for Filing Advancements

  • No change

Final Action Advancements & Retrogressions

EB-3 Professionals and Skilled Workers

  • EB-3 India will advance by 2 weeks to April 15, 2013

EB-3 Other Workers

  • EB-3 India will advance by 2 weeks to April 15, 2013

EB-5 Unreserved Categories (C5, T5, I5, and R5)

  • India will retrogress by 6 months to May 1, 2019

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student-5473769_1280F-1 International Students at university campuses across the country have been rocked by alarming reports that their visas and SEVIS records have been suddenly terminated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), without any prior notice to the university or the student.

This new wave of SEVIS terminations which began early this month has led to a string of lawsuits filed in federal district court, challenging the legality of the terminations.

School officials became aware of terminated F-1 student records only after conducting checks of the Student & Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) system. The records of those impacted simply state that the visa revocations were due to an immigration status violation.

The following three generic classifications have been provided for the terminations:

  • Termination based on serious adverse foreign policy consequences
  • Student identified in a criminal records check
  • Student identified in criminal check and/or has had their visa revoked

No further details regarding the reason for the terminations have been provided by the government, nor were school officials notified of actions taken.

What is SEVIS?

The Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) is an online system used by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to maintain information on Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP)-certified schools, F-1 and M-1 students who come to the United States to begin a program of student.

Designated school officials use SEVIS to issue Forms I-20 to specific nonimmigrants to obtain F or M status while enrolled at the school and to satisfy their legal responsibilities.

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calendar-162126_1280We are pleased to report that today the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs published the April 2025 Visa Bulletin.

In this blog post, we breakdown the movement of the employment-based and family-sponsored categories in the coming month.

USCIS Adjustment of Status

For employment-based preference categories, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has confirmed it will continue to use the Final Action Dates chart to determine filing eligibility for adjustment of status to permanent residence in the month of April.

For family-sponsored preference categories, USCIS will also continue to use the Dates for Filing chart to determine filing eligibility for adjustment of status to permanent residence in the month of April.

Please click here for more information.

Highlights of the April 2025 Visa Bulletin

At a Glance

What can we expect to see in the month of April?

Employment-Based Categories

Dates for Filing Advancements

EB-2 Members of the Professions and Aliens of Exceptional Ability

  • EB-2 India will advance by 1 month to February 1, 2013
  • EB-2 China will advance by 1 month to November 1, 2020

EB-3 Other Workers

  • EB-3 Worldwide, Mexico, and the Philippines will advance by 1 month to June 22, 2021

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