The United States government has announced plans to revoke the visas of foreign nationals who entered the country as tourists or business visitors but subsequently applied for asylum, describing the practice as visa fraud.
The US State Department said Tuesday that it was working with the Department of Homeland Security to identify individuals who obtained visas as temporary visitors but later sought asylum as a means of remaining permanently in the country.
State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott, in a statement confirming reports about the policy, said obtaining a visa with the intention of seeking asylum constituted fraud and could warrant visa revocation.
“Obtaining a visa in order to seek asylum is fraud — which is grounds for visa revocation,” Pigott said.
The White House, in a post on X, said the measure could affect up to 200,000 visas, describing it as potentially the largest mass visa revocation in US history.
However, the State Department did not confirm the figure, saying the number of affected visas remained subject to change.
“The number of revocations remains dynamic and will be done on a rolling basis,” Pigott said.
The latest measure represents another escalation of President Donald Trump’s immigration policies, which have focused on reducing both illegal immigration and the entry or continued stay of foreign nationals deemed to have violated US immigration rules.
Earlier this month, the State Department said about 175,000 US visas had been revoked since Trump returned to office in January 2025.
The revocations have reportedly been based on various grounds, including criminal offences such as driving under the influence and conduct considered supportive of violence, including praise for the killing of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk.
The administration has also revoked the visas of several Mexican officials, including the son of former Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, a move that drew criticism from Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.
Trump, who campaigned heavily on immigration during his successful bid for re-election, has overseen the deportation of large numbers of migrants living in the US without valid immigration status.
His administration has also introduced measures aimed at restricting the entry of foreigners who comply with formal visa requirements but subsequently overstay their visas or otherwise violate immigration conditions.
Some of the administration’s immigration measures have faced legal challenges, with US courts blocking or limiting parts of the policies.
Last Friday, a federal judge struck down a government measure that would have restricted visas for nationals of 75 countries seeking to settle permanently in the United States. The affected countries included Afghanistan, Brazil, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, Somalia, Thailand and Yemen.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration is considering further expansion of social media screening for visa applicants as part of its broader immigration vetting measures.
“We are making clear that a visa is a privilege — not a right,” Pigott said.
The latest policy is expected to heighten scrutiny of foreign nationals who enter the United States on temporary visas before seeking asylum or other forms of immigration relief.
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