US revokes 300,000 visas: record crackdown explained
Web StoryWatch this story in 15 seconds →Key takeaways
- The US has revoked over 300,000 visas since January 2025, the fastest pace on record, the State Department says.
- Most were cancelled over crime or safety concerns. Over 4,000 were linked to birth tourism.
- Rights groups warn the rules go too far, citing free speech and profiling concerns.
The United States has cancelled over 300,000 visas since January 2025. The State Department announced the number on October 20, 2026. It says no past government has revoked visas this fast.
What happened
On Tuesday, the State Department said total visa revocations had passed 300,000. The count covers the period since President Donald Trump took office in January 2025. State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott posted the update on X.
The number has climbed quickly this year. In January, the total was just over 100,000. An update on August 10 put it past 175,000.
About three weeks ago, it was near 250,000. Now it is over 300,000, according to Reuters.
A visa lets a foreign citizen enter or stay in the US. When it is revoked, that person loses the right to travel to America. Most of the cancelled visas belonged to people already in the country.
Why it happened
Officials say the goal is public safety. Pigott said the US has "zero tolerance for foreigners here on visas who break the law, commit fraud, or undermine our national security," the New York Post reports.
The biggest reasons, according to the State Department, are crime and safety. About 25% of the revocations were for assault and related crimes. About 22% were for driving under the influence.
About 7% were for theft. Another 7% were for drug use or dealing, Al Jazeera reports.
More than 4,000 visas were revoked over birth tourism. This means pregnant women who travelled to the US to give birth there.
A baby born on US soil gets American citizenship. Officials say these trips misuse the visa system.
The US has also tightened screening for new visa applicants. It now checks applicants' social media more closely. It has expanded background screening, Al Jazeera reports.
Why it matters
This pace is new. No earlier government has revoked visas this fast, the State Department says. To see the scale, the Bureau of Consular Affairs vetted only 23,000 cases last year.
That figure comes from the Post. The pace has clearly sped up since then.
Rights advocates are pushing back. They say the crackdown threatens free speech.
They say it feels like surveillance of immigrants. They say it singles out immigrant communities, Al Jazeera reports.
Some cases have drawn strong criticism, Reuters reports. These include revocations of pro-Palestinian foreign protesters.
Others lost visas over social media comments about the killing of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk. Rights groups say these moves punish speech, not crimes.
Advocates also warn of racial profiling. They point to Somali American communities in Minnesota. They say broad rules punish whole groups for isolated cases of fraud, Reuters reports.
The State Department has not said which countries the affected people came from. Those numbers are not public yet.
What happens next
The administration says it will continue. "We are taking, and will continue to take, action to keep our borders, and our nation, secure," the department told Al Jazeera.
Screening is likely to stay strict. The US already added deeper social media checks this year.
More rules could slow down visa approvals for many travellers. People planning trips should apply early and follow every rule.
For travellers, the lesson is simple. Keep your documents clean and correct. Even a small error can cause trouble.
Our guide on passport photo rules shows how strict the details can be.
And if you want to know what happens at the border, read how some countries stamp passports while others do not. If you are only passing through the US, check our guide on layovers and stopovers. It shows which papers you may need.
This fight is far from over. The government plans to keep revoking visas at this pace. Rights groups plan to keep pushing back.
For the millions of people who hold US visas, the message is clear. Follow the rules closely. The checks are getting tougher.
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