The Trump administration is preparing to revoke the business and tourism visas of up to 200,000 foreigners who have applied for or are currently seeking asylum status in the United States, according to State Department documents obtained by The Associated Press and two US officials.
If implemented, the action would be the largest single mass revocation of visas in US history. The State Department is expected to announce the revocations in the coming weeks unless the policy is challenged or revised.
The measure would apply to B1 and B2 visas issued between 2016 and 2026 to holders who have sought asylum or are now seeking asylum. The State Department will coordinate the action with the Department of Homeland Security.
“We are coordinating with DHS to identify and revoke the nonimmigrant visas of foreigners who have come to the United States claiming to be short-term visitors, but then file for asylum to stay here permanently,” State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said.
Pigott declined to provide an estimate of the number of visas that could ultimately be revoked, saying “as the process will be ongoing, the number of revocations remains dynamic and will be done on a rolling basis.”
The revocations would not necessarily lead to immediate deportation. Most people whose asylum cases are currently pending would be recategorised but would lose their status as business or tourism travellers, according to US officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because the revocations have not yet been finalised.
The proposed action comes as the Trump administration has intensified restrictions on visa applicants since President Donald Trump began his second term last year. The measures have included demands for more information about applicants’ social media histories, expensive bonds for visa processing and bans on visa issuance to citizens of certain countries.
Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau also criticised the use of tourist and business visas by people who subsequently apply for asylum. In a social media post on Monday, Landau wrote that “People in the US and all over the world are fed up with bogus asylum claims.” He added that “Asylum isn’t supposed to be a loophole to circumvent immigration law”, citing the case of a Colombian citizen who entered the US on a tourist visa in 2015 and later applied for asylum.
B1 visas are generally issued for business travel, while B2 visas cover tourism, family visits and medical care. The documents and officials did not establish how many B1 and B2 visa holders are currently seeking or have previously sought asylum and would therefore be affected.
Current applicants for B1 and B2 visas are required to affirm that they will not apply for asylum in the United States and demonstrate that they intend to return to their home countries.
The proposed revocations would add to a much broader campaign of visa enforcement. Over the past 18 months, the State Department has revoked about 175,000 visas from people convicted or accused of crimes ranging from drunken driving to rape and robbery, as well as people who have publicly spoken out against US policies, particularly concerning the Middle East.
The administration has also sought to crack down on so-called birth tourism, which it claims involves foreign pregnant women travelling to the United States so their children can benefit from birthright citizenship. Trump has repeatedly attempted to end birthright citizenship, but courts, including the Supreme Court, have rejected those challenges.
The State Department documents indicate that screening of current B1 and B2 visa holders began after the department received information about asylum requests from US Citizenship and Immigration Services.
