Trump signed Proclamation 10948 banning new Harvard international student visas, directing State to revoke existing ones

On June 4, 2025, President Trump signed Proclamation 10948, "Enhancing National Security by Addressing Risks at Harvard University," suspending entry of all new international students seeking F, M, or J visas to study at Harvard and directing Secretary of State Rubio to consider revoking existing visas for Harvard's approximately 6,800 currently enrolled international students on a case-by-case basis. The proclamation invoked INA § 212(f) — a statutory authority traditionally used to restrict entry of foreign nationals posing security threats — to target a single named private institution as political punishment for its refusal to comply with administration demands.

The retaliatory campaign against Harvard had begun in April 2025, when the administration sent Harvard a list of demands including turning over student records to DHS, changing curriculum, accepting government oversight of admissions, and altering its diversity programs. Harvard publicly refused. The administration responded by freezing Harvard's federal grants, revoking its tax-exempt status, and — with Proclamation 10948 — weaponizing immigration enforcement against the university's international student body. The proclamation accused Harvard of "jeopardiz[ing] the integrity of the entire United States student and exchange visitor visa system" and "embolden[ing] other institutions to similarly disregard the rule of law," framing the university's assertion of academic independence as a national security threat.

Federal courts blocked the proclamation almost immediately: a TRO was issued June 5, 2025, and a preliminary injunction followed on June 24. The court found the administration's use of § 212(f) — written to restrict categories of foreign nationals, not to punish named institutions — likely outside the statute's scope. The Rubio State Department subsequently opened a separate J-1 investigation into Harvard's visa sponsorship authority in July 2025.