US Introduces New, Stricter Visa Rules For Foreign Journalists, International Students

The DHS says it's necessary to better vet the visa holders. But advocates for foreign journalists oppose the change, saying the drastically shorter stay would severely restrict their ability to live and work in the States. The Trump administration announced on Thursday (July 16) that it will drastically shorten visas for foreign journalists in the US to 240 days, down from years, and cut those for Chinese journalists to only 90 days, raising concerns over press freedom in the United States and retaliation against US journalists overseas. It has also finalised a rule that will require international students to get the approval of the federal government if they intend to stay in the US for more than four years. The rule pertaining to foreign journalists announced by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Thursday will do away with the “duration of status” system, which allows foreign journalists to stay and work in the United States as long as they meet eligibility requirements. That will be replaced with a fixed period of time, though the visas may be extended. Even shorter visa rule for Chinese journalists The DHS says it's necessary to better vet the visa holders. But advocates for foreign journalists oppose the change, saying the drastically shorter stay would severely restrict their ability to live and work in the States. The even shorter visa rule for Chinese journalists, which does not include those from the “special administrative regions” of Hong Kong or Macau, is particularly harsh and could add tensions to the already fraught relations between Washington and Beijing, despite stated intents by both leaders to stabilise ties. The decision comes at a time when president Donald Trump is targeting news organisations with multiple threats and legal actions at home and his administration is tightening immigration policies, though foreign journalists are not considered immigrants. Journalism organisations denounce the decision The rule will take effect 60 days after it’s published in the Federal Register. Congress can reject a rule, but it's extremely rare. “We are outraged that the Trump administration has cruelly limited the duration of visas for foreign journalists from a period of up to five years to a fixed eight months,” the advocacy group Reporters with Borders said in a statement. “This change destroys international journalists’ ability to report from the US and makes it extremely difficult for international outlets to operate here at all.” “The relentless cycle of visa renewals restricts press freedom, as journalists will feel compelled to avoid drawing the administration’s ire, lest their applications be rejected,” it said. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a watchdog group, released a statement calling the new visa policy "the behavior of a backsliding democracy, not the international vanguard of free speech.” In proposing the change in August 2025, the federal agency said the rising number of foreign journalists in the US “poses a challenge” to its ability “to monitor and oversee these nonimmigrants while they are in the United States." Mentioned as well: students and foreign visitors, who also will see their previous rule of “duration of status” replaced with fixed periods by the same decision. By admitting them into the country for a fixed period, the DHS said it could better vet the visa holders to ensure their activities are permissible. The visas can be extended. This isn't the first time shortening visas has been proposed The first Trump administration sought to change the visa rules in 2020, but the proposal was withdrawn in 2021 when president Joe Biden took office. But the White House then tightened visas for Chinese journalists to only 90 days, in response to the treatment of US journalists in China, including the expulsion of three Wall Street Journal reporters, as tensions flared up during the COVID-19 pandemic between the two countries. The Biden administration later relaxed the rule, allowing stays to increase to up to a year. When the Trump administration proposed to revive the 90-day rule last year, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said it opposed “the US’s discriminatory move targeting a specific country.” The Chinese Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the latest decision. New Rule prevents international students' stay in the US for more than four years In another significant development, the Trump administration has also finalised a rule that will prevent international students from staying in the US for more than four years unless they obtain the federal government's approval, the DHS said on Thursday, announcing a departure from long-standing practice. The rule, which goes into effect in September, also puts in place restrictions on when and how students may change their major or academic program. Current rules give students significantly more flexibility. They are generally admitted to the US for as long as it takes to complete the academic program, many of which are longer than four years by design. Higher education leaders have opposed the rule, arguing the change creates an administrative burden for schools, universities and the federal government. “This action is unnecessary and duplicative,” said Zuzana Wootson, deputy director of federal policy at the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, a nonprofit organisation. “International students are already among the most closely monitored nonimmigrant populations in the US and are subject to rigorous oversight by DHS and academic institutions.” In a statement, DHS secretary Markwayne Mullin described the rule as cracking down on a loophole that international students were exploiting by extending their studies. “By implementing clear, finite limits on these visas, the United States is reclaiming its ability to properly screen, vet, and monitor individuals within our borders,” Mullin said. “This final rule ensures that foreign students remain focused on their primary purpose: completing their studies and returning home.” The rule is the latest in a series of Trump administration crackdowns on international students. Last spring, widespread terminations of students' legal status sent students scrambling to hide or leave the country out of fear they would be detained for being in the US illegally. Visa applicants will have to share their social media handles The federal government also imposed a requirement for visa applicants to share their social media handles, subjecting them to increased scrutiny. And travel bans affecting more than a dozen countries across Africa, the Middle East and Asia further limited international students' ability to obtain a visa and enter the US for school. The rule comes as international student enrollment is declining. The effects are most acutely felt at schools with small endowments and student bodies that enroll a large percentage of international students, who have been recruited from abroad. International students are not eligible for federal financial aid and, as a result, often pay full-price tuition. Higher education leaders have warned the growing uncertainty could further drive international students elsewhere, with ripple effects throughout the workforce and the economy. “At a time when global competition for talent is intensifying, this policy sends exactly the wrong message,” Fanta Aw, CEO of NAFSA, an association that represents international education, said in a statement. “It tells the world’s brightest students and scholars that the United States is becoming less welcoming, less predictable, and less committed.” This article went live on July seventeenth, two thousand twenty six, at fourteen minutes past eleven in the morning. The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.