The Trump administration intends to vet the files of 55 million foreigners in the United States.
The Trump administration intends to scrutinize the legal visas of the 55 million foreign nationals residing in the United States to determine whether they have committed violations or pose a security threat.
According to the Washington Post, this represents a significant expansion of current efforts to curb allegations of immigration violations, criminal activity, threats to public safety, or support for a terrorist organization.
In an emailed statement, the US State Department said that “ongoing vetting” will allow it to revoke visas when evidence of potential ineligibility is detected.
“We review all available information as part of the vetting process, including law enforcement or immigration records or any other information that comes to light after visas are issued,” the statement read.
The newspaper explained that “the Trump administration oversaw a strict immigration crackdown that initially focused on illegal immigration to the United States, but expanded to include reviews of legal immigration, such as those traveling to the country on tourist, work, or student visas.”
She indicated that the Department of State issued nearly 11 million temporary visas, not including permanent residency or “green cards,” during fiscal year 2024.
The vast majority of these visas, 77%, were issued for business or tourism purposes, while approximately 7% were issued to visiting students or academics and their families.
While officials noted that the process of re-examining those already holding visas, which could take years in some cases, is likely to be time-consuming and logistically complex, the State Department has taken new measures, including reviewing social media accounts for “hostility toward the United States and anti-Semitism.”
In this context, a senior State Department official, who requested anonymity to inform the media, said, “We are collecting more information than ever before.”
While the official acknowledged that examining social media accounts would likely add more time to the review process, he also said, “Time is not my concern, but the safety of Americans is.”
The newspaper noted that this news has raised concerns among some immigration experts, who said that visa holders are already subject to heightened scrutiny when new information emerges, including interactions with US law enforcement agencies, such as arrests or convictions.
David J. Baer, director of immigration policy at the Cato Institute, a liberal think tank based in Washington, D.C., said it appears the administration wants to “proactively review social media posts and revoke visas based on expression, not behavior.”
“I doubt this will apply to everyone, but I suspect these reviews will be conducted in a discriminatory manner, targeting migrants from certain backgrounds, certain visa categories, or specific people who want a pretext to cancel their visas,” Beer added.
The newspaper noted that foreign students have become a focus of attention for the US administration, which announced earlier this week the revocation of more than 6,000 student visas due to overstaying and other legal violations, including approximately 200 to 300 visas for what it described as “terrorism.”
In addition, the administration sought to revoke visas and deport individuals who participated in university protests against the war on Gaza.
For his part, the senior State Department official declined to disclose the number of student visas revoked in connection with university protest activities.
“There are thousands of people with visas in the United States who exercised their freedom of expression, and they are not the ones whose visas we revoked,” he said.
Shafaq.com