US set for largest mass visa revocation in history targeting up to 200,000 foreigners, officials say

US set for largest mass Visa revocation in history targeting up to 200,000 foreigners, officials say 1 of 2 | President Donald Trump walks past Secretary of State Marco Rubio as he arrives for a roundtable on the American mining industry, Friday, Aug. 7, 2026, at the State Department in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson) 2 of 2 | Secretary of State Marco Rubio listens during a cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump, Friday, July 31, 2026, at Camp David, the presidential retreat, near Thurmont, Md., Friday, July 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) By MATTHEW LEE Updated 10:30 PM MESZ, August 24, 2026 Leer en español Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Washington (AP) — The Trump administration is preparing to revoke the business and tourism visas of up to 200,000 foreigners who have applied for or are currently seeking Asylum status in the United States. If it happens, the move would be the largest single mass revocation of visas in U.S. history and would likely face legal challenges. Unless challenged or revised, the State Department is expected to announce in the coming weeks the revocation of so-called B1 and B2 visas issued between 2016 and 2026 whose holders have sought Asylum or are now seeking Asylum, according to State Department documents obtained by The Associated Press and two U.S. officials. The action will be taken in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security. “We are coordinating with DHS to identify and revoke the nonimmigrant visas of foreigners who have come to the United States claiming to be short-term visitors, but then file for Asylum to stay here permanently,” said State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott. He declined to comment on the number of visas that might be revoked, saying “as the process will be ongoing, the number of revocations remains dynamic and will be done on a rolling basis.” The revocations would not necessarily result in their immediate deportation, the officials said. Most of those with Asylum cases currently pending would be recategorized but would lose their status as business or tourism travelers, according to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the revocations are not final yet. Trump administration revokes visa of Brazil’s ambassador to US in spat with Lula 3 MIN READ US to make visa bond requirements permanent, affecting mostly African countries 4 MIN READ US carries out its first deportations under pact for Liberia to accept 1,200 non-Liberians 4 MIN READ Since President Donald Trump took office for his second term last year, his administration has steadily ramped up restrictions on visa applicants — demanding more information about their social media histories, requiring the posting of expensive bonds for the processing of visas, and outright banning the issuance of visas to citizens of certain countries. In a social media post on Monday, Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau called out people who he said try to use tourist and business visas to get into the United States and then apply for Asylum. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google and Terms of Service apply. “People in the US and all over the world are fed up with bogus Asylum claims,” Landau wrote on X. “Asylum isn’t supposed to be a loophole to circumvent immigration law.” Landau cited the case of a Colombian citizen who came to the U.S. in 2015 on a tourist visa and then applied for Asylum. B1 visas are generally issued for business trips and B2 visas are generally issued for tourism, family visits or medical care. It was not immediately clear from the documents or the officials how many of these visa holders are seeking or have sought Asylum in the United States and would be affected by the revocations. Current applicants for B1 and B2 visas are asked to affirm that they will not apply for Asylum in the United States and prove that they intend to return to their home countries. In the past 18 months, the State Department has revoked about 175,000 visas for people who have been convicted or accused of crimes ranging from drunken driving to rape and robbery, as well as for people who have spoken out publicly against U.S. policies, particularly in the Middle East. The administration has also moved to crack down on so-called birth tourism, a practice the administration claims is used by foreign pregnant women to come to the United States to give birth so that their child will benefit from birthright citizenship. Trump has tried several times to end birthright citizenship, but those challenges have been rejected by courts, including the Supreme Court. The State Department documents obtained by the AP suggest screening of current B1 and B2 visa holders began after the State Department received information about Asylum requests from the Citizen and Immigration Service.