Jul 14, 2020 - Politics & Policy

Trump administration rescinds foreign student visa guidance

Stef W. Kight

A view of the campus of Massachusetts Institute of Technology — Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Photo: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

The Trump administration is rescinding new guidance from Immigrations and Customs Enforcement that would have forced some international students to transfer schools or leave the U.S. if their classes were held completely online in the fall.

Why it matters: The guidance was immediately met with broad backlash and lawsuits backed by more than 200 universities and 18 states. The decision to rescind the guidance and return to the policy in place since March was announced in a Tuesday hearing for the lawsuit brought by Harvard and MIT.

The big picture: U.S. officials provided no justification for the ICE policy, which could have upended the lives of many of the approximately one million international students currently studying at U.S. colleges.

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Trump administration rescinds foreign student visa guidance

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