On September 8, NAFSA joined ACE and 30 other higher education associations in a letter urging Secretary of State Marco Rubio to exempt non-immigrants on F, J, and M visas from the June 25 travel ban as well as any future bans ordered by this administration.
This advocacy stems from NAFSA's broader concern about the myriad barriers currently facing international students who wish to arrive on a U.S. campus this academic year. These include a three-week pause in student visa interviews between May 27 and June 18, 2025, which is peak issuance season. The resumption of interviews carried a directive that U.S. consulates implement new social media vetting protocols within five days—with scant guidance provided. This vague and unnecessary administrative burden taxed a system that was already struggling with visa processing appointment scheduling delays, and further compounds the visa logjam created by the three-week suspension.
Visa interview availability was initially a serious issue for international students at consulates in India, China, Nigeria, and Japan, among others. India and China are the top two international student-sending countries to the United States; Nigeria is seventh and Japan is 13th. Visa appointment availability remains a serious issue in India and Sub-Saharan Africa.
Take Action
- Convey to Congress that the visa suspension, combined with visa appointment issues and a visa ban affecting 19 countries, jeopardizes the contributions international students and scholars make to every corner of the United States. Urge them to support expedited visa processing and to exempt international students and scholars from the current travel ban.