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Boston Globe
a day ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
‘I would not have left': An Indian student went home after the US terminated his status. Now he can't come back.
'A lot of people got scared,' said the student, who asked not to be named for fear of reprisal. Some foreign students made the wrenching decision to drop everything and leave. The PhD student was among them. He bought a one-way ticket from Boston to Mumbai, and left April 5. Advertisement What these students couldn't have known: The federal government would soon restore most international students' statuses in its Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) The problem, immigration lawyers said, is that the State Department did not automatically restore their visas, which allow international travel. With a revoked visa, anyone who leaves and tries to come back could be stopped by airport officers and barred from reentering the United States, or risk getting stuck abroad because of security delays. Back in India, the PhD student applied for a new visa May 9, but got denied two weeks later. He has an 'active' status in the SEVIS database, 'as though the termination did not happen,' according to a notice sent by ICE in June and reviewed by the Globe. But without a valid visa he is physically locked out of the country. Advertisement While the story of a PhD marooned in Mumbai may seem distant, it illustrates how compliance with the letter of the law doesn't always ensure protection. It also shows how difficult it is to bring people back once they've removed themselves from the country, said immigration lawyers. 'I did all the things right. I was compliant. They asked me to leave. I left the country,' said the PhD student. In doing so, 'I became a statistic to their self-deportation [initiative].' If he had to do it all over again, he said, 'I would not have left.' Lawyers said they generally advised students who had their statuses terminated this spring to stay in the United States, or made sure students at least knew their options. 'We know of cases where individuals did decide that 'I'm not going to fight,' for whatever reason,' said Boston-based attorney Elizabeth Goss. It's hard to know how many students left, or where they ended up. A sizable number seem to hail from India, which The State Department, in an email to the Globe, said that 'whenever an individual's visa is revoked, he or she may reapply at one of our consulates or embassies overseas at any time.' Advertisement But some students have been denied authorization for reentry, and in late May, the US The way Cambridge-based lawyer Stephanie Marzouk sees it, the Trump administration 'doesn't want foreign students here' and is 'pursuing this scorched-earth strategy of doing everything they can to dissuade people from coming to the US to study.' The Indian PhD student, who didn't want to identify his school, applied for his visa before the United States suspended new interviews, but he was rejected under Immigration and Nationality Act's Section 214(b) because he didn't sufficiently demonstrate 'strong ties' to his native country that would compel him to return home. He questioned why that concern was never flagged previously: 'I've done two visas before this [one], and I've presented my strong ties to them successfully.' 'My dad is a heart patient while my mother is a breast cancer patient,' he added. 'I'm not interested in leaving them.' Soon after his rejection, he created a poll in his WhatsApp chat group of Indian students and found at least 14 others denied for the same reason. Dahlia French, an immigration lawyer based in Texas, has met with around 11 students and heard of another 25 or so rejected on these grounds. 'Almost all are Indian,' she said. Charles Kuck, a lawyer based in Atlanta, , said he's only heard of two students who have been approved for new visas since they returned home, 'but I've got at least 60 who have been denied' for 214(b), and 'they were all from India.' Advertisement Reversing a visa denial is practically unheard of because of the judicial doctrine of Kuck advised clients who left not to reapply for a visa. 'If the revocations were illegal, which we believe they were, then these students don't need to go back to the consulate; they can just come in on their current visas,' he said. Simii, who asked to be identified by her first name only to protect her privacy, is a 30-year-old who graduated from Northeastern in 2022. The software engineer was in her third year of employment related to her field of study when she learned her SEVIS status was terminated and her visa revoked. She returned to India, only to learn her SEVIS record had been reactivated. But with only a few months left before her student status runs out, she doubts the government will grant her another visa. The PhD candidate had been studying neurodevelopmental disorders in his university lab in Boston when he found out ICE terminated his record. The reason he was given, he said, was 'otherwise failing to maintain status -- Individual identified in criminal records check and/or has had VISA revoked.' Around five years ago, he was picked up in New York state for driving while ability impaired, Advertisement 'I was 21 at the time, and that was definitely a stupid mistake,' he said. When he applied for a visa for his PhD program, he declared the prior DWAI conviction, then completed another round of medical and psychological evaluations before it was approved. After his recent visa rejection, he's struggling to find a lawyer. For these students, 'all that can be done is they can be better prepared to go back on a second consular interview,' and try to prove they do maintain strong ties to their country, said Kuck. Simii, the Northeastern graduate, said she no longer sees the point in reapplying. Instead, she's traveling around India before looking for a job. 'I didn't leave because I gave up. I left because I refused to live in fear, uncertainty, and anxiety created by the immigration system,' she wrote in an email. 'I am sharing my story so that other students who feel scared, stuck, or ashamed because of a system that failed them can feel seen and heard.' Globe correspondent Jade Lozada contributed to this report. Brooke Hauser can be reached at
Time of India
4 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Indian students in US at risk of deportation over not declaring job status
Hyderabad: Several Indian students in the US were served notices to prove their employment status, but many have reportedly refrained from responding due to fear of deportation. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now These students admitted they were not currently engaged in any authorised employment, making them vulnerable to removal from the country. The notices, issued by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), require students to respond within strict timelines—typically 15 days—or risk immediate termination of their visa status. However, many students decided against responding. The trigger was the failure to report employment under the Optional Practical Training (OPT) or STEM OPT programme, or exceeding the allowed unemployment window. Students on F-1 visas are permitted a total of 90 days of unemployment during regular OPT, and an additional 60 days for those under STEM extensions. Breaching this limit, or failing to update employment details in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), is considered a violation of visa rules. 'They asked me to submit a letter from my employer, proof of payroll, and an updated I-983 form within 15 days,' said a 26-year-old tech graduate, currently based in Texas. 'I panicked—I don't have a job. I've applied everywhere, but I haven't heard back. Now I don't know what to do.' Those who fail to comply may have their SEVIS records terminated, which would mean immediate loss of legal status and the initiation of deportation proceedings. For many students, the threat of removal is not just about immigration—it's financial survival. The average Indian student graduating from a US institution carries an education loan burden ranging between Rs 25 to Rs 45 lakhs. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now With no job, no way to repay, and no visa security, the crisis is pushing some to remain in the country unlawfully. 'I don't want to become illegal, but going back means financial ruin,' said a graduate in data analytics from Atlanta. 'My father took out a loan against our house. If I leave now, we're done. How?' Some have refrained from responding to ICE altogether, fearing their confession of unemployment could speed up removal. 'It's a trap either way,' said a computer science student from Chicago. 'If I say I'm unemployed, they might deport me. If I stay silent, they'll still come after me. But at least I'll have time to figure something out.' Immigration consultants are advising affected students to warn that silence may worsen their case. 'Not responding can be interpreted as an admission of guilt or non-compliance,' said Ravi Lothumalla, an immigration consultant based in Dallas. 'The right way is to respond honestly and seek reinstatement if possible, but many students don't even know they have that option.'
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Business Standard
4 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
Amazon, Google, Tesla among top 25 OPT hirers in US; Indians lead STEM list
More international students in the US were hired through the Optional Practical Training (OPT) programme in 2024 than ever before — and Amazon, Google and Microsoft emerged as the top recruiters, according to the latest Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) data released by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Under OPT, foreign students on an F-1 visa are allowed to work in the US in a role related to their field of study, either during their course or after graduation. Those with degrees in science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) can also apply for a two-year STEM OPT extension. More foreign students worked in 2024 According to DHS, 194,554 foreign students received OPT work authorisation in 2024, up from 160,627 in 2023 — a 21.1% increase and the fourth consecutive year of growth. An additional 95,384 students were approved for STEM OPT extensions, reflecting a 54% rise from the previous year. Meanwhile, 130,586 students worked under Curricular Practical Training (CPT), representing a slight decline of 0.4%. The total number of unique foreign students who received practical training approval (after removing duplicates for those who received more than one authorisation) was 381,140. Most students who took part in STEM OPT in 2024 were from India and China. Of the 165,524 students approved: 48.0% were from India 20.4% were from China California continued to host the largest share of international students, with 14.6% of all active SEVIS records — 237,763 in total. Top 25 employers for foreign students under OPT in 2024 (pre- and post-completion) Amazon – 5,379 University of California – 2,112 Arizona State University – 1,895 University of Texas – 1,305 Bright Mind Enrichment and Schooling – 1,234 Tesla – 1,170 Goldman Sachs – 1,148 Apple – 1,135 Google – 1,110 Meta – 1,081 Microsoft – 1,066 ByteDance – 1,045 Deloitte – 1,033 Walmart – 951 Intel – 946 State University of New York – 906 Ernst & Young – 889 Johns Hopkins – 827 Harvard – 799 Community Dreams Foundation – 795 University of Michigan – 767 University of Southern California – 717 University of Illinois – 714 McKinsey & Company – 680 JP Morgan Chase – 675 Top 25 employers for foreign students under STEM OPT in 2024 Amazon – 6,679 Google – 1,778 Microsoft – 1,496 Meta – 1,302 University of California – 1,302 Walmart – 1,140 Intel – 1,023 Apple – 973 Goldman Sachs – 962 Tesla – 901 JP Morgan Chase – 887 Ernst & Young – 854 Deloitte – 833 McKinsey & Company – 810 ByteDance – 642 Tata Consultancy Services – 639 Stanford University – 541 University of Texas – 536 Citigroup – 517 Bloomberg – 456 Qualcomm – 455 Oracle – 445 Boston Consulting Group – 412 NVIDIA – 410 Cummins – 410 Top 25 employers for foreign students under CPT in 2024 Amazon – 3,205 Tesla – 1,118 Lindsey Wilson College – 1,028 Google – 880 Microsoft – 819 NVIDIA – 743 Meta – 657 Deloitte – 614 Apple – 600 Intel – 512 JP Morgan Chase – 400 Goldman Sachs – 386 Walmart – 344 ByteDance – 337 Adobe Inc – 332 Advanced Micro Devices – 319 Cummins – 308 Ernst & Young – 299 World Bank – 292 CVS – 276 Qualcomm – 270 University of Texas – 267 Morgan Stanley – 267 Tata Consultancy Services – 266 Boston Consulting Group – 181 OPT used to access long-term US jobs According to Varun Singh, managing director at XIPHIAS Immigration, the continued surge in OPT and STEM OPT reflects how international students are using the route to access longer-term job opportunities in the US. 'The growing demand for skilled talent in sectors like technology, engineering and healthcare has created an environment where Indian students are increasingly seen as a strong workforce,' he told Business Standard. Singh added that the STEM OPT extension gives Indian graduates more time to build networks and secure employment. 'Despite the competitive H-1B process and shifting visa rules, the OPT route remains a critical bridge for many students aiming to build careers in the US,' Singh said.
Mint
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Mint
Donald Trump wants to deport foreign students merely for what they say
'EVERY TIME I find one of these lunatics I take away their visa." That is how Marco Rubio, the secretary of state, last month described the Trump administration's push to deport foreign university students who had participated in campus activism. Mr Rubio initially suggested that his department had cancelled at least 300 visas. That number increasingly looks out of date as the deportation campaign has spread beyond elite east-coast schools and for conduct beyond protest and speech. More than 100 students in California alone have had their visas yanked—some of them seemingly for infractions as minor as a speeding ticket. The crackdown combines two of President Donald Trump's campaign promises: to carry out mass deportations and to expel students involved in campus protests that erupted in response to Israel's invasion of Gaza, following the brutal attacks of October 7th 2023. Deportation is no longer just a way to reduce the number of illegal immigrants in America and deter more from coming, but a means of punishing those whose beliefs differ from the federal government's. The arrests and visa revocations have created widespread anxiety on campuses already reeling from upheavals. Lawsuits ask whether the government can deport non-citizens in good legal standing merely for their speech. How is the State Department deciding who to target? Officials are reportedly using AI to scour students' social-media accounts for evidence that they have participated in pro-Palestinian campus protests. Betar, an activist group, says it is feeding names to the government. (It is unclear whether immigration officials are working off of such tips.) Locating these students is fairly easy. 'International students are the most tracked of all non-immigrants," explains Fanta Aw of NAFSA, an association that promotes student exchanges. A system created in the 1990s that keeps tabs on foreign students was expanded following the September 11th attacks. When university administrators check the system, called SEVIS, they find that students' permissions have been terminated by the government without warning, leaving them vulnerable to deportation. An early and prominent case involving the arrest of Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian graduate student at Columbia University, illuminates the legal arguments the Trump administration is making as it tries to deport protesters. On March 8th Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents hustled Mr Khalil away from his very pregnant wife while saying that his visa had been revoked. (According to court documents they seemed to be unaware he had a green card, which confers permanent residency.) He remains detained in Louisiana while a petition challenging his imprisonment moves through federal court in New Jersey, where he was previously held. On Truth Social, Mr Trump alleged that Mr Khalil is a 'Radical Foreign Pro-Hamas Student" and that student protesters are 'terrorist sympathisers". Mr Khalil's allies see such presidential targeting of individuals as a throwback to dark chapters of American history. 'We haven't seen a threat to free speech like this since the Red Scare" of the 1950s, says Esha Bhandari, one of his lawyers. The Trump administration is targeting a broad group of foreigners by making aggressive use of a 1952 immigration law. Under it, the secretary of state can decree someone 'inadmissible" whose presence in the country 'would have potentially serious adverse foreign-policy consequences". Further, the government suggests that the courts can't second-guess what constitutes a serious foreign-policy consequence, nor ask for specific evidence of wrongdoing. They are arguing that 'it's a blank cheque to the administration to declare anything contrary to our foreign policy, and then revoke people's visas and deport them", says David Cole, who argued a similar case on behalf of Palestinian protesters that was litigated over two decades. The law has rarely been used in this way. In a court brief, 150 legal scholars reported that the foreign-policy provision had been invoked in just 15 deportation cases since 1990, resulting in only four removals. If its use of the 1952 law fails, the government has also argued that Mr Khalil is deportable for withholding information on his green-card application. For precedent, the government's lawyers cite several cases from the 1950s when the perceived threats from communism often won out over First Amendment concerns. Yet since then, in large part as a reaction to the trampling of rights during that Red Scare, the courts and Congress have strengthened free-speech protections for non-citizens. The same law Mr Rubio is invoking to deport Mr Khalil was amended in 1990 to prevent deportation based on an immigrant's beliefs, unless the secretary of state tells Congress that there is a compelling reason for deportation. It is unclear whether Mr Rubio has done so, though he asserts that Mr Khalil's presence undermines America's policy of 'combating antisemitism across the globe". In a report explaining these changes at the time, lawmakers expressed hope that 'this authority would be used sparingly and not merely because there is a likelihood that an alien will make critical remarks about the United States or its policies". The First Amendment makes no distinction between non-citizens and citizens. But the Supreme Court has tended to defer to the executive where immigration is concerned. 'For generations, there have been people on both the left and the right who have argued that the ordinary rules that apply in constitutional law generally don't apply when immigration policies are at stake", says Adam Cox of New York University. For example, during Mr Trump's first term the court upheld the third iteration of the administration's travel ban on people from several muslim-majority countries, despite the ban's constitutionally questionable discrimination. There are also doubts about whether the foreign-policy provision is too vague to be enforced. How can an immigrant stay on the right side of the law when they don't know what might get them deported? In a soap-opera-style twist, that was the conclusion of Mr Trump's late sister, Maryanne Trump Barry, then a district-court judge, when she ruled in 1996 that the measure was void because of its vagueness. Her decision was overturned for procedural reasons. But if Mr Khalil's case makes it to the Supreme Court, the justices could rely on her reasoning and avoid confronting the question of whether executive power over immigration takes precedence over the free-speech rights of non-citizens. While Mr Khalil's litigation plays out, Mr Rubio will no doubt continue revoking student visas. Ms Aw says she expects to see students decide that studying in America isn't worth the stress. Stay on top of American politics with The US in brief, our daily newsletter with fast analysis of the most important political news, and Checks and Balance, a weekly note from our Lexington columnist that examines the state of American democracy and the issues that matter to voters.
Time of India
12-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Planning to study in the US? Here's what you need to know about the F-1 visa
The US F-1 visa enables international students to study in America. Eligibility requires admission to a SEVP-approved school, proof of English ability, and financial capacity. The application process involves obtaining Form I-20, paying fees, completing the DS-160 form, and attending interviews. Maintaining visa status requires full-time enrollment and adherence to regulations. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Gain admission to a SEVP‑approved school Prove English ability and financial capacity Confirm intent to return home after studies Receive your Form I‑20 from the school Pay the SEVIS fee (~US $350) Complete DS‑160 form and print confirmation with barcode Schedule biometrics at a VAC and visa interview at the US embassy Pay the visa application fee (US $185) Also Read: US embassy issues stern warning amid Indian student handcuffing row Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Valid passport (6+ months beyond stay) Form I‑20 and SEVIS fee receipt DS‑160 confirmation and visa‑fee receipt Academic records, test scores, proof of funds Your academic plan, finances, and family ties to India Strength of intent to return post studies Be punctual, clear, and honest Enrol full‑time at your institution Seek permission before working off‑campus Keep valid documents and inform your DSO of changes Navigating a US student visa can be complex, but the US F‑1 visa offers international students a clear route to study in America. This guide unveils key steps-from eligibility and application to maintaining status and work F‑1 visa is for academic program students at US institutions. To be eligible, you must:One of the common visa denial reasons—such as insufficient funds or weak academic intent, and one must check thorough documentation and undergo a genuine interview approved, comply with F‑1 rules:F‑1 students may work on‑campus (typically up to 20 hrs/week during semesters) and qualify for Optional Practical Training OPT ) after graduating—with STEM graduates eligible for a 24‑month you may apply for OPT or seek H‑1B sponsorship, paving a path to longer‑term US stay.
