The Trump administration is preparing what would be the largest mass visa revocation in US history, planning to cancel B1 and B2 visas held by up to 200,000 foreigners who later applied for asylum, according to the Associated Press.
The move follows the State Department’s pause on immigrant visa appointments worldwide and is part of the same broader immigration crackdown in President Donald Trump’s second term.
What the Plan Targets
The revocations would apply to B1 business visas and B2 tourism visas issued between 2016 and 2026 to people who later filed for asylum in the US.
State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said the department is “coordinating with DHS to identify and revoke the nonimmigrant visas of foreigners who have come to the United States claiming to be short-term visitors, but then file for asylum to stay here permanently.”
Officials say the final number remains “dynamic” and that revocations would happen on a rolling basis rather than all at once.
What It Would Mean for Visa Holders
A revoked visa would not automatically trigger deportation. Applicants with a pending asylum case would instead be shifted into a different immigration status while that case continues.
Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau framed the move on X as a response to abuse of the asylum system, writing that “people in the US and all over the world are fed up with bogus asylum claims.”
No formal announcement has been made yet. The State Department is expected to detail the plan in the coming weeks, and legal challenges are considered likely once it does.
Part of a Broader Crackdown
The State Department has already revoked around 175,000 visas over the past 18 months, mostly over criminal convictions or accusations and, in some cases, applicants’ political speech.
The plan also comes days after a court setback for the administration: a federal judge struck down a separate policy that had suspended immigrant visas for applicants from 75 countries, ruling it exceeded the Secretary of State’s statutory authority.
Travelers currently in the US on B1 or B2 visas who have an asylum application pending should watch for official State Department guidance rather than relying on media reports, since the policy has not yet been formally issued.
Sources
- Fox News — Trump admin eyes historic mass visa revocation targeting 200K asylum seekers
- PBS NewsHour (AP) — US set for largest mass visa revocation in history targeting up to 200,000 foreigners, officials say
- Al Jazeera — US plans to revoke business, tourism visas of 200,000 asylum seekers
- Axios — Trump administration to revoke up to 200,000 visas of asylum seekers
- NPR — Federal judge strikes down Trump visa ban targeting 75 countries
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