Federal Judge Blocks Trump Administration’s Harvard Student Visa Ban

A federal judge has dealt the most important blow to the Trump administration by blocking Harvard’s student visa ban that aimed to stop international students from attending the prestigious university. The case revolves around “core constitutional rights that must be safeguarded: freedom of thought, freedom of expression and freedom of speech,” ruled Judge Allison Burroughs against the president’s proclamation. Harvard’s student body shows why this ruling matters – international students make up about 27% of all undergraduate and graduate enrollment, based on 2024 to 2025 data.

Judge Burroughs’ preliminary injunction stops the federal government from enforcing its May 22 decision to revoke Harvard’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification until she makes a final decision in the university’s lawsuit. The court has ordered the federal government to guide consular and customs officers within 72 hours to ignore the revocation. This ruling adds to the growing conflict between Harvard and the administration, which has already frozen more than 2.6 billion in funding and threatened the university’s tax-exempt status.

Judge Blocks Trump’s Student Visa Ban

Judge Allison Burroughs of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to ban Harvard students from getting visas. Her preliminary injunction stops federal agencies from enforcing the May 22 proclamation that revoked Harvard’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification.

Constitutional grounds form the basis of the court’s decision. The judge emphasized that fundamental freedoms protected by the Constitution were at stake, including freedom of thought, expression, and speech. These rights apply to both American citizens and international students at Harvard University.

“This case centers on core constitutional rights that must be safeguarded,” Judge Burroughs wrote in her ruling. She ordered the federal government to give specific guidance to consular and customs officers within 72 hours. The officers must disregard the revocation when they process visa applications for Harvard students.

The administration faces a substantial legal setback with this court decision. They had increasingly targeted elite universities through various policy measures. Their attempt to restrict international student access to Harvard came after other actions, including a $2.6 billion funding freeze and threats to the university’s tax-exempt status.

Legal experts say the preliminary injunction will stay active while the court examines Harvard’s lawsuit against the visa ban fully. The ruling brings immediate relief to thousands of international students who faced uncertainty under the proclamation.

Students from India, China, and other countries benefit substantially from this decision. They make up much of Harvard’s international student community and contribute to its academic environment. About 27% of Harvard’s undergraduate and graduate students come from outside the United States.

The Department of Justice hasn’t announced plans to appeal to a higher court. Harvard officials welcome the preliminary ruling while they prepare for more legal challenges over student visa policies.

The case explains the tension between executive authority on immigration and constitutional protections for educational institutions. Courts may limit broad immigration powers when actions could violate constitutional rights in academic settings.

Harvard Challenges Federal Revocation of SEVP

Harvard University launched a detailed legal challenge against the Department of Homeland Security after Secretary Kristi Noem ordered the university’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification revoked on May 22, 2025. This sudden action threatened Harvard’s ability to enroll international students and forced existing foreign students to transfer to other institutions or risk losing their legal status in the United States.

Harvard’s 72-page complaint stated that the government’s actions were “a blatant violation of the First Amendment, the Due Process Clause, and the Administrative Procedure Act”. The university claimed the revocation came as retaliation after Harvard publicly rejected the Trump administration’s demands in early April. The administration had asked Harvard to screen international applicants for political beliefs, hire faculty to enforce “viewpoint diversity,” and stop recognizing pro-Palestine student groups.

The situation became critical for Harvard because international students make up about 27% of its student body. Nearly 7,000 visa holders risked losing their legal status. Harvard’s President Alan Garber called the administration’s efforts retaliatory, while the university’s lawsuit emphasized that “without its international students, Harvard is not Harvard”.

The federal court quickly responded by granting a temporary restraining order hours after Harvard filed its suit. Judge Burroughs issued a preliminary injunction on June 20 that stopped federal agencies from implementing the May 22 revocation. The court instructed the government to prepare guidance for consular posts, field offices, and ports of entry to ignore the revocation notice and restore visa holders’ previous status.

The legal fight continues on several fronts. The injunction doesn’t solve the problems of Harvard’s motion against the June 4 presidential proclamation that blocks new foreign nationals from studying at Harvard, though an emergency order currently blocks that proclamation. The court order also leaves DHS’s ongoing administrative review untouched following a second “Notice of Intent to Withdraw” Harvard’s certification.

Harvard has reassured its international community that it remains “fully committed to compliance with applicable F-1 regulations and strongly opposes any effort to withdraw the University’s certification”.

International Students Face Visa Chaos

Legal battles over Harvard’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification have created a new crisis. International students worldwide face uncertainty in the US visa process. The Trump administration ordered US embassies to stop scheduling visa interviews for foreign students as it plans to implement a complete social media screening for all international applicants.

This new directive could delay visa processing significantly and hurt universities financially. These institutions depend heavily on foreign students for revenue. The US currently hosts more than one million foreign students who contribute nearly INR 3695.86bn to the economy and support more than 378,000 jobs in 2023 to 2024.

The expanded social media vetting would look at applicants’ posts, shares, and comments on Instagram, X and TikTok for content that might threaten national security. Students applying for visas report significant delays, detailed social media reviews, and ideological tests that check their support for Israel and President Trump’s agenda.

The administration has canceled thousands of students’ visas and SEVIS statuses nationwide since March. Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledged his department’s role in revoking visas “probably in the thousands at this point”. Half of those affected are from India, according to the American Immigration Lawyers Association estimates.

Harvard has felt these changes immediately. A student landing at Boston’s Logan International Airport had to return to India, while another was sent back to China. A visiting professor’s visa appointment in Tel Aviv was canceled without any chance to reschedule. The university describes a “palpable sense of fear, confusion, and uncertainty” on campus.

Students face scrutiny for reasons ranging from vague “foreign policy threats” to minor traffic violations like speeding tickets. A Harvard official noted that these policies have created “worldwide travel disruptions affecting international students”.

Some students have already withdrawn their enrollment because of these new policies. A student accepted to Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health withdrew despite having a valid visa. The situation has affected funding too – a sponsor pulled a INR 4219022.54 grant from an incoming law student.

Takeaway for you:

A federal court blocked Harvard’s student visa ban, dealing a major blow to Trump administration’s educational policies. Judge Burroughs based her ruling on constitutional principles that protect freedom of thought, expression, and speech in international academic communities. Without doubt, thousands of students stuck in bureaucratic limbo can breathe easier, though the legal fight continues.

American universities see chaos as visa processing faces disruption like never before. Harvard officials point to worldwide travel disruptions caused by expanded social media checks and mass visa cancelations. On top of that, these rules put at risk the INR 3695.86bn that foreign students pump into America’s economy while creating hundreds of thousands of jobs.

This case reveals the clash between executive power over immigration and constitutional rights in academia. Harvard still needs to deal with ongoing reviews and possible appeals, despite winning this round. The stakes are high, especially since international students make up more than 25% of Harvard’s student body.

This goes far beyond Harvard’s campus. Students from India, China, and many other countries face ideology-based screening and random enforcement that put their education at risk. The court stepped in to protect not just procedures but the basic constitutional rights that make American academia free.

Both sides will present their complete arguments in the coming months as legal battles continue. All the same, Judge Burroughs has drawn clear constitutional lines that authorities must follow. This case could decide if American universities remain global hubs of diverse thinking or become isolated in our connected world.