US to reduce duration of stay for foreign journalists and students
An administrative document published on Thursday stated that the US administration has decided to reduce the duration of stays for foreign students and journalists in the United States, in the latest step of its hardline immigration policy.
According to the Associated Press, under the new rules set to take effect within two months unless blocked by Congress, foreign nationals holding student visas will no longer be allowed to remain in the United States for more than four years.
The stay of foreign journalists will be limited to 240 days, approximately eight months, with the possibility of applying for extensions of similar duration.
This measure will affect journalists accredited to hundreds of foreign media organizations in the United States. The administration proposed it last year, triggering a period of consultations.
Around 100 international media outlets and press organizations, including Agence France-Presse (AFP), stated in an open letter that the move would lead to a “reduction in the coverage” of US news “in quantity and quality.”
President Donald Trump has pledged to halt illegal immigration and restrict legal immigration, and his initiatives rarely face opposition in Congress, where his Republican Party holds a majority.
Since returning to power, his administration has deported a large number of undocumented immigrants and imposed a series of very strict restrictions on legal entry for foreign nationals into the United States, thereby limiting available pathways such as asylum and green cards, and even banning foreigners from certain developing countries.
Trump has also consistently attacked journalists and the coverage provided by some media outlets, accusing them of spreading fake news.
Reporters Without Borders condemned the decision, describing it as “outrageous,” and warned that it could “deprive foreign journalists of the ability to cover events from the United States and make the work of international media on US soil extremely difficult, if not impossible.”
The organization noted that the “endless cycle of visa renewals restricts press freedom,” considering it a “direct violation” of freedom of expression and the press, and called on Congress to take action.
In justifying its decision, the Department of Homeland Security, which manages the file of incoming immigrants, cited a “significant increase” in recent years in the number of students and journalists benefiting from these visas.
It noted that this “poses a challenge to the department’s ability to monitor and control these non-immigrants during their stay in the United States.”
In 2024, the department recorded the entry of more than 1.8 million people into the United States on student visas, an 11 percent increase compared to the previous year.
