The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has revoked nearly 80,000 non-immigrant visas during its first nine months in office, a senior State Department official confirmed to Reuters on Thursday (November 6). The move reflects the administration’s hard-line immigration stance.
Following Trump’s inauguration on January 20, the administration launched an aggressive crackdown on undocumented immigration, issuing multiple executive orders aimed at fulfilling campaign promises to tighten border control and enhance national security. These directives triggered nationwide enforcement operations involving police, customs officials, and paramilitary units.
The approximately 80,000 canceled visas did not all belong to undocumented immigrants; many holders were legally residing in the United States on short-term visas. According to State Department sources, a significant portion of the revoked visas was linked to criminal activity.
The report states that around 16,000 visas were canceled due to drunk-driving offenses, 12,000 were revoked over assault or violent crime allegations, and another 8,000 were canceled on theft-related charges.
A senior official told Reuters that nearly half of all revoked visas were tied to these three categories of offenses.
In addition, nearly 6,000 foreign students lost their visas in August over accusations including overstaying, legal violations, and in some cases, alleged support for terrorism.
In May, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that the department would continue revoking visas of individuals whose activities conflict with America’s foreign policy priorities. The Trump administration’s actions signal a stricter approach toward swiftly canceling visas of individuals involved in criminal activity or considered national security risks.
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