The President signed an executive order on 05/29/2020 to bar Chinese graduate students and visiting scholars from entering the U.S. if they have ever been related to Chinese entities that have military ties. The policy is effective on 06/01/2020.
The executive order is aimed at blocking Chinese students who are pursuing a graduate degree or conducting research in the U.S. with an F or J visa, with exceptions. For example, students from China who are seeking to study at the undergraduate level are exempted. The policy also exempts students and researchers who had never worked with, studies at, or conducted researched on behalf of Chinese entities that implement or support the so-called "military-civil fusion strategy." The strategy, as defined by the proclamation, indicates "actions by or at the behest of the PRC to acquire and divert foreign technologies, specifically critical and emerging technologies, to incorporate into and advance the PRC's military capabilities."
The proclamation does not specifically list any Chinese institutions or universities. Instead, it gives the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security discretion on how to implement the policy. In actuality, this means that Chinese students and researchers, especially those majoring in STEM subjects, would likely be facing lengthy "administrative processing" of their visa applications as well as higher chances of visa refusals.
In addition to the suspension, the proclamation directs DOS and DHS to take action to further protect sensitive U.S. technologies and intellectual property by revoking approved visas. Pursuant to section 221(i) of the INA, the State Department has broad authority to revoke visas if there are any concerns regarding inadmissibility. On that basis, the proclamation urges the State Department to revoke F or J visas that are held by Chinese students who are currently in the U.S. if they meet the criteria of denial of entry.
A visa revocation may impair these students' ability to travel internationally. If a student leaves the U.S. after his visa has been revoked, he must apply for a new visa to return, which would not be easy under current policies. For students and researchers who are present in the U.S., revocation of visa does not mean that their authorization to stay is automatically revoked. They can stay in the U.S. as long as they properly maintain their visa status. However, it is possible that Chinese students could be asked to depart the U.S. within a certain period of time after their visas have been revoked.
The Secretary of State and Secretary of Homeland Security will review non-immigrant and immigrant visa programs within 60 days of the proclamation's effective day and recommend to the President to see if further restriction is needed to cover more categories of people. Hence, foreign nationals, especially China nationals, should take steps to prepare for the worst and come up with contingency plans.
(Immigration laws and policies change regularly. If you have any questions regarding this article, please visit www.1visa1.com to schedule legal consultation.)
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