The United States has revoked 40 international student visas in the country over sundry offences, reports say.
According to experts and advocates, the Donald Trump administration’s decision was taken over trifle issues like traffic offences, leaving people with the belief that it is part of a bigger plan by the US government to control immigration and how universities handle it.
Expectedly, the development has left many students as shocked and scared as they could, hurling them into a state of uncertainty and despair.
According to The Guardian UK, Madison Lisa, one of the affected students from the University of Wisconsin, said she was just a month away from graduation when she got an unexpected email.
“ISS is writing to inform you that your SEVIS record was terminated,” the email said. SEVIS stands for the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, which is managed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Lisa said at first, she thought the email was fake but after checking online and reading student forums, she found out she was now “out of status,” just like many other international students.
The reason? A minor traffic issue from the year before. She got two tickets and was fingerprinted when she went to court.
When a student’s SEVIS record is terminated, they usually have only 15 days to leave the U.S. If they stay longer, they risk being deported or banned from coming back.
The Guardian UK reports that other students in schools like Stanford, UCLA, UC San Diego, Ohio State, and the University of Oregon are also affected.
Many of them have similar stories. They got small traffic tickets, went to court, were fingerprinted, and had no idea their visa status would be affected.
Students made a spreadsheet online and shared stories from over 50 universities.
Even though many of the students did not commit any crimes—some charges were even dropped—they were still labeled as having “criminal records” in their SEVIS termination letters.
Most of the terminations happened on April 4, shortly after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio made a public statement on March 27.
