Over 6,000 Student Visas Cancelled by State Department for Legal and Overstay Issues

The State Department has announced that it has invalidated more than 6,000 student visas due to violations of legal regulations and instances of students overstaying their allowed period.

A considerable number of these infractions are associated with crimes such as assault, operating a vehicle under the influence, theft, and allegations connected to 'supporting terrorism,' as detailed by an official. However, the department did not specify whether these related to accusations, arrests, formal charges, or proven convictions.

According to the official, around two-thirds of these visa cancellations were due to legal infringements. These actions were first made public through the visa revocation reports.

These actions impacted a small group of the approximately 1.1 million international students enrolled in U.S. educational institutions during the 2023-2024 academic year.

Specifically, between 200 and 300 of these visa terminations involved suspicions of participation in terrorist-related support.

The Trump administration has put foreign students under significant scrutiny, especially those involved in pro-Palestinian demonstrations within U.S. universities. A notable case involved a Tufts University doctoral student, whose visa was initially revoked after she penned an op-ed against U.S. policies in the Middle East, leading to her detention by ICE. Her detention lasted six weeks before her visa was reinstated.

Tighter regulations have also been placed on student visa applicants, with checks extending to their social media activities for potentially antisemitic content. The State Department requires that candidates provide access to their social media profiles.

A request for further comment from the State Department on these visa revocations has yet to receive a response.

Kathryn Watson, a political correspondent situated in Washington, D.C., has contributed to this narrative for CBS News Digital.