Trump administration says over 300,000 visas revoked during second term

The State Department told Al Jazeera that more than 300,000 visas issued to foreign nationals were cancelled during President Donald Trump’s second term, a pace the agency says surpasses any prior administration. “We are taking, and will continue to take, action to keep our borders, and our nation, secure,” the department said in an email on Tuesday.

An official explained that most of the cancellations were linked to criminal conduct, public‑safety concerns, immigration violations, fraud, misrepresentation or other evidence that the holder no longer qualified for a visa. Over 4,000 of the revocations involved individuals who participated in or facilitated birth tourism. The breakdown showed 25 percent were related to assault and similar crimes, 22 percent to driving under the influence, 7 percent to theft and another 7 percent to substance‑abuse offenses or distribution.

State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott posted on X that the revocations targeted visa‑holding foreigners who broke the law, committed fraud or threatened national security. “We have zero tolerance for foreigners here on visas who break the law, commit fraud or undermine our national security,” he wrote.

The figure of 300,000 revocations eclipsed the 175,000 recorded in August and the more than 100,000 cancellations announced in January, which at the time were described as a record. The administration has also tightened its visa policy, adding stricter social‑media vetting and broader screening measures.

Human‑rights groups and legal experts have criticized the heightened social‑media screening, arguing it curtails free speech and amounts to surveillance that singles out immigrants.