The administration of US President Donald Trump has announced plans to revoke the non-immigrant visas of foreigners who entered the United States as visitors but later applied for asylum.
The proposed policy is part of the Trump administration’s broader immigration crackdown, which has affected both undocumented migrants and some categories of legal immigrants.
According to a US State Department spokesperson, the department is working with the Department of Homeland Security to identify foreign nationals who entered the country claiming to be short-term visitors but subsequently filed asylum applications seeking to remain in the United States permanently.
The spokesperson said the government would revoke the non-immigrant visas of individuals identified under the new policy.
The State Department, however, did not disclose the number of visas expected to be revoked.
The Associated Press reported that as many as 200,000 holders of US business and tourism visas could be affected, citing State Department documents and two US officials.
If implemented on that scale, the move would reportedly become the largest single mass revocation of US visas in American history.
According to the AP report, the State Department intends to target B1 and B2 visa holders who were issued visas between 2016 and 2026 and have either applied for asylum or currently have pending asylum claims.
B1 visas are primarily issued for business-related travel, while B2 visas cover tourism and other temporary visits.
The proposed visa revocation would not automatically mean immediate deportation for everyone affected.
The AP reported that people with pending asylum applications could be placed under a different immigration category, although they would lose their status as business or tourism visitors.
US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau, in a post on X on Monday, alleged that the American immigration system had for years been overwhelmed by what he described as frivolous asylum applications.
The latest announcement comes after the State Department disclosed earlier in August that the Trump administration had revoked more than 175,000 visas belonging to foreign nationals.
The administration has continued to tighten immigration enforcement since Trump returned to office, introducing measures targeting illegal migration while also taking action affecting legal immigration.
Nigerians who entered the United States on B1 or B2 visas and subsequently applied for asylum could potentially fall within the category covered by the proposed policy.
However, the announcement does not indicate that all Nigerians who have applied for asylum after entering the US as visitors will automatically lose their visas. The specific circumstances of each case and the final implementation of the policy will determine who is affected.
The development could therefore have significant implications for Nigerians and other foreign nationals who travelled to the US temporarily but later sought protection through the American asylum system.
President Trump has pursued an aggressive immigration agenda since returning to the White House, including expanded deportation efforts, visa and green-card revocations and tighter scrutiny of immigration applications.
The administration has argued that the measures are necessary to strengthen national security, enforce immigration laws and prevent abuse of the US immigration system.
Rights groups, however, have criticised several aspects of the crackdown, arguing that some policies raise concerns about due process, free speech and the treatment of ethnic minorities.
The administration’s immigration measures have also faced multiple legal challenges in US courts.
The latest visa policy is expected to attract further attention as the State Department and Department of Homeland Security determine how the proposed revocations will be implemented.
