US Set for Largest Mass Visa Revocation08/25 06:11

   

   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.

   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.

   "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 U.S. Citizenship and Immigration 
Services.