Apr 16, 2025 - Politics & Policy

Trump admin asks IRS to rescind Harvard's tax-exempt status

April Rubin

People walk through Harvard gates — People walk through a gate as they exit Harvard Yard on the campus of Harvard University campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts on April 15. Photo: Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images

The Trump administration asked the Internal Revenue Service to rescind Harvard's tax-exempt status, multiple outlets reported Wednesday, citing anonymous sources.

Why it matters: The Trump administration is escalating its retaliation against the Ivy League university after it refused to comply with the administration's list of demands.

Catch up quick: It cut $2.2 billion in grants and $60 million in contracts to Harvard.

Driving the news: Trump on Tuesday said on Truth Social that Harvard should "lose its tax exempt status and be taxed as a political entity."

He said the university was pushing politics and ideology.
"Tax exempt status is totally contingent on acting in the public interest," he wrote.

Zoom out: The majority of public and private universities and colleges are tax-exempt entities because of their educational purposes or because they're state governmental entities, according to the Association of American Universities.

The federal government has recognized the educational mission "as fundamental to fostering the productive and civic capacity of its citizens."

Go deeper: How Trump wants to assert control at Harvard and elite colleges

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Trump admin asks IRS to rescind Harvard's tax-exempt status

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