Immigration attorneys commented on a new trend they have been observing since the beginning of December, that visas are getting revoked without any valid reason. Immigration attorney Rahul Reddy said the new trend is confusing, as people who have, for example, a DUI case 12 years ago and followed all the rules, got the stamping after disclosing everything to the authorities, are suddenly getting their visas revoked for the same 12-year-old DUI. H-1B, H-4, and F-1 visas are being revoked in large numbers. Earlier, revocation used to occur only when new information is found about any individual, like any involvement in fraud or criminal activity that the US admin was not aware of before or when the visa was granted, Reddy explained. “There is no public statement but visas are getting revoked,” Reddy said. Immigration attorney Emily Neumann said apart from the State Department’s random social media posts reminding everybody that having a visa is a privilege and not a right and it can be revoked any time, there has been no statement from the authorities on why these visas are getting revoked. “These are people who already disclosed all their information. It’s not that there’s ne information that causes the Department of State to question whether you qualify. They have already determined that these people qualify. In some cases, they even got their visa stamping done during the current Trump administration. But still got their visas revoked. So that tells me this has nothing to do with actual public safety,” Emily said.
Visa revocation means nothing if you are in the US
Neumann explained that these visa revocations mean nothing unless you leave the US. It doesn’t take effect until they leave the US and they will have to go for stamping again and show the same documents
Visa revoked after leaving the US
Some NRI groups on social media pointed out that people are getting their visas revoked once they land in India. Several people received the message that their visas had been prudentially revoked when they left the US. It means they can’t re-enter the US using the same visa and will have to get a fresh visa interview. All visa interviews in India are randomly deferred as the Department of State has started social media vetting.
Don’t travel even if you don’t have any criminal record, valid visa stamp
Both Reddy and Neumann emphasized that H-1B visa holders should avoid traveling outside the US even if they have a valid visa stamping and even if they have no criminal record, because rules are changing every month. “You should not travel until this administration is out of office,” Neumann said.
