(Washington) The administration of Donald Trump proposed Thursday to reduce the length of stay in the United States of foreign students and journalists, in a context of strengthening legal immigration restrictions in the country.
According to this proposal, foreign nationals holding a student visa are not allowed to stay more than four years in American territory.
Foreign journalists would, for their part, be limited to 240 -day stays, while being able to request renewals for identical periods. Only Chinese journalists would be limited to 90 days.
So far, the United States has granted visas for the duration of a student’s program and up to five years for a journalist. These visas, known as “non-immigrant” category, are limited to 10 years.
This measure, if implemented, would affect accredited journalists for hundreds of foreign media in the United States.
“For too long, previous administrations have authorized foreign students and other visa holders to stay in the United States, almost indefinitely, presenting risks for security, costing taxpayers and disadvantaging American citizens,” said the department of internal security, in a statement on Wednesday.
This proposal was published in the Federal Registerthe Federal Government’s Official Journal, opening a short period for public comments, before the change comes into force.
According to statistics from the Ministry of Commerce, international students contributed to the American economy up to more than $ 50 billion in 2023.
The United States welcomed more than 1.1 million international students during the 2023-2024 academic year, more than any other country. Generally paying all the registration fees, their presence represents a crucial source of income for American universities.
Decrease in “international competitiveness”
“This proposed rule sends a message to talented people around the world, signifying that their contributions are not valued in the United States,” reacted Miriam Feldblum, head of a group representing managers of American higher education establishments.
“This is not only harming international students – it also weakens the capacity of higher education and American universities to attract the best talents, it decreases our international competitiveness,” said the president of the Alliance of Presidents of Higher Education and Immigration.
This announcement comes at the start of the academic school year, several establishments reporting a decrease in registrations for international students.
The Trump administration has engaged in a series of battles against universities, attacking renowned establishments suspected of leaving, on their campuses, to spread anti -Semitic ideas, especially in the context of demonstrations against war in the Gaza Strip.
In mid-August, the State Department has announced that it has revoked 6,000 student visas since January. And some 55 million visa holders are affected by reinforced checks.
At the start of the week, Donald Trump said he wanted to welcome 600,000 Chinese students, an announcement in time with the desire displayed of his leader in diplomacy, Marco Rubio, to “firmly” dismiss the visas of certain Chinese students.
The advantages linked to immigration, in particular the right to live and work in the United States, “remain a privilege and not a right,” repeats the American Secretary of State.
Upon his return to the White House in January, Donald Trump erected the fight against illegal immigration in absolute priority, evoking an “invasion” of the United States by “criminals from abroad”.
At the end of his first mandate, Donald Trump proposed to reduce the duration of journalist’s visas, an idea abandoned by his successor, Democrat Joe Biden.
