Observations on Ex. 1, SEVIS Notice - Policy Regarding Termination of Records, filed by the government in the case of Arizona Student DOE 2 v. Trump, Case No. 4:25-cv-00175, (D. Ariz.). The SEVP policy document is publicly available in the case's docket on CourtListener, as Document Number 13, Attachment 1.
Is this the promised new SEVP "policy that will provide a framework for SEVIS record terminations?"
On April 25, 2025 a lawyer representing a plaintiff in one of the lawsuits filed against the government challenging the SEVIS record terminations provided the Associated Press (AP) "with a copy of a statement a government lawyer emailed to him on the restoration of legal status for people whose records were recently terminated. It says:
'ICE is developing a policy that will provide a framework for SEVIS record terminations. Until such a policy is issued, the SEVIS records for plaintiff(s) in this case (and other similarly situated plaintiffs) will remain Active or shall be re-activated if not currently active and ICE will not modify the record solely based on the NCIC finding that resulted in the recent SEVIS record termination.'"
See: ICE is reversing the termination of legal status for international students around the US, Janie Har and Kate Brumback, Associated Press, updated, April 25, 2025, and see NAFSA's blog entry, Update on Litigation Protecting the Legal Rights of International Students and Scholars (April 25, 2025).
So the question is whether Ex. 1, SEVIS Notice - Policy Regarding Termination of Records, filed by the government in the case of Arizona Student DOE 2 v. Trump, Case No. 4:25-cv-00175, (D. Ariz.) is the policy referenced by the government. If so, it appears to beg similar and even new questions, and will likely invite further litigation once there are indications that it's being applied.
NAFSA has also received informal confirmation that the policy document has been submitted in other court cases as well.
It’s important to describe the source
As of April 29, 2025, the “new policy” being discussed is available only as an exhibit filed as part of a government response challenging one of the plaintiff's motions in the case of Arizona Student DOE 2 v. Trump, Case No. 4:25-cv-00175, (D. Ariz.)., in which the government's Department of Justice attorneys referenced a new "policy regarding the termination of SEVIS records," stating:
"ICE also recently issued a policy regarding the termination of SEVIS records that may impact Plaintiff. Ex. 1, SEVIS Notice - Policy Regarding Termination of Records."
The case is Arizona Student DOE 2 v. Trump, 4:25-cv-00175, (D. Ariz.). See the CourtListener case docket, which has free links to many of the case documents, including Exhibit 1 - SEVIS Notice — Document #13 , Attachment #1.
Is this truly a Broadcast Message?
Although the document is formatted like an SEVP Broadcast Message, it differs in the following ways from the Broadcast Messages that DSOs routinely receive from SEVP:
- It does not contain a Broadcast Message number as do the Broadcast Messages meant for DSOs
- DSOs report not having received an email from SEVP regarding this Broadcast Message, and report not seeing it in the SEVIS Broadcast Messages page within SEVIS.
- It is directed to "All SEVP Personnel" rather than to "All SEVIS Users" like standard Broadcast Messages
- The top of page one has in bold red capital letters the label “FOUO-FOR INTERNAL SEVP USE ONLY,” which would tend to indicate that SEVP has not yet sent this message to the field as guidance for DSOs.
And so for now, it is only an exhibit submitted by the government in a single case, even though this exhibit is publicly available on sites such as CourtListener. That is not to say that it might not already be in use by SEVP or be eventually sent by SEVP to DSOs. There are already indications that the policy document has been submitted as a government exhibit in a couple of other cases.
SEVP asserts “inherent” authority to terminate SEVIS records “as needed”
SEVP claims in the Broadcast Message that “Congress provided broad statutory authority under 8 USC 1372 for the Government ‘to develop and conduct a program to collect’ information regarding nonimmigrant students and exchange visitors and to ‘establish an electronic means to monitor and verify’ certain related information, which is the system referred to as the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS). Inherent in that authority is SEVP's ability to update and maintain the information in SEVIS and, as such, to terminate SEVIS records, as needed, to carry out the purposes of the program.”
Compare this to language in a “SEVP Director’s Corner” in a 2015 issue of SEVP Spotlight, where former SEVP Director Lou Farrell said:
“As many of you know, the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) manages certifiied schools, F and M students, and their dependents on behalf of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. As a part of this national security responsibility, SEVP has the regulatory authority to terminate a student or dependent record in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) for noncompliance.
If SEVP terminates a student or dependent record for noncompliance, that individual will need to leave the United States and may have difficulty returning to the country in the future. Therefore, it is important that we work with you, the members of the academic community, to help your F and M students, as well as their dependents, understand what they need to do to remain compliant and avoid the risk of termination.”
That particular 2015 article identified the most common SEVP-initiated termination reasons as: "Nonpayment of the I-901 SEVIS Fee" and "Failing to comply and properly respond to the Form I-515A, “Notice to Student or Exchange Visitor," and also referenced only government terminations based on "noncompliance."
This shows that SEVP has always asserted at least some authority to terminate SEVIS records on its own. Like many other strategies of the Trump-Vance administration, though, this is an example of using an authority that was of limited scope in the past and reasserting it at a much broader scope and frequency.
We might expect future terminations in line with this policy approach.
SEVP references new SEVP-only termination reasons
The Broadcast Message introduces two new SEVP-only termination reasons:
- Evidence of a Failure to Comply with the Terms of Nonimmigrant Status Exists
- Department of State Visa Revocation (Effective Immediately)
It then explains the scope of these new reasons in the remainder of the Broadcast Message:
“Failure to Comply with Terms of Nonimmigrant Status
When SEVP has objective evidence that a nonimmigrant visa holder is no longer complying with the terms of their nonimmigrant status for any reason, then the SEVIS record may be terminated on that basis. Information should be entered into in SEVIS that identifies the failure to comply. In its discretion, ICE may conduct further investigation or initiate removal proceedings pursuant to INA 237(a)(1)(C)(i) based on evidence that a nonimmigrant student is not complying with the terms of their nonimmigrant status.”
Note that the termination reason is presented as “Evidence of Failure to Comply with the Terms of Nonimmigrant Status Exists." SEVP then refers to when SEVP has “objective” evidence of noncompliance. This still does not respond to the question of what is the student’s immigration status after a record is terminated… are they “in status” or not? Eligible for F-1 benefits like OPT or school transfer, or not? These questions are not adequately answered by the Broadcast Message, and will continue to confound advisers, lawyers, and judges.
“Visa Revocations
Pursuant to INA 221(i), the U.S. Department of State (State) may at any time, in its discretion, revoke an alien's visa. State can consider derogatory information provided by ICE and other U.S. law enforcement agencies in its assessment of whether visa revocation is appropriate for an alien. When State revokes an alien's visa with immediate effect, ICE should take steps to initiate removal proceedings.
If State revokes a nonimmigrant visa effective immediately, SEVP may terminate the nonimmigrant's SEVIS record based on the visa revocation with immediate effect, as such a revocation can serve as a basis of removability under INA 237(a)(10(B). SEVP should not, however, terminate a nonimmigrant's SEVIS record on this basis until it has confirmed that State has revoked the visa.”
Note that this is a direct assertion of authority to terminate a SEVIS record simply because a visa has been revoked, rather than for some underlying status violation. But, SEVP says they’ll do it only for visa revocations that are effective “immediately,” which would exclude, for example some “prudential” visa revocations (some of which relate to DUI issues, for example). However, the student, school or lawyer may not know whether a visa revocation is “immediate” or effective only upon departure. Once again, though, SEVP is saying that they’ll terminate a SEVIS record on the visa revocation basis only when the visa revocation is immediate.
Absent from the Broadcast Message is any mention of the “Other” and “Otherwise Failing to Maintain Status” termination reasons that figured prominently in the first round of SEVIS record terminations.
Since the Broadcast Message list of termination reasons is not an exhaustive list (it prefaces the list with “including, but not limited to”), we cannot say whether DHS would also continue to utilize “Other” and “Otherwise failing to maintain status” as well. Also noteworthy is that SEVP has not yet updated the “SEVIS Termination Reasons” in the SEVIS Help Hub to reference the two new reasons identified in the Broadcast Message.
Reminder
The information contained in this resource is designed to provide general information only and should not be construed as legal advice. The application and impact of laws and government policies and interpretations can vary widely based on the specific facts involved. While every attempt has been made to ensure that the information contained in this resource has been obtained from reliable sources, NAFSA and the publishers disclaim any and all liability resulting from reliance upon this information, or from any errors contained herein. This publication does not substitute for the direct reading of applicable laws and government guidance, nor does it constitute legal advice, which can only be obtained from licensed attorneys.