The Trump administration said Tuesday it is withdrawing a proposed rule that would have forced foreign students to return home if the college courses they enrolled in were taught entirely online when universities reopen in the fall.
The Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service (ICE) announced last week that those on F-1 and M-1 student visas would have to leave the US or transfer to another university if their schools They offer classes entirely online when they reopen in the fall. If they don’t, they could face deportation proceedings.
HARVARD, MIT DEMANDS BY ICE REQUIRES FOREIGN STUDENTS TO LEAVE US IF COURSES ARE ONLY ONLINE
Additionally, the agency announced that the State Department will not issue visas to students enrolled in comprehensive online programs, and that United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will not allow them to enter the country.
But the administration said it was rescinding the rule as a court hearing was being held in a lawsuit challenging the rule from Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). According to the notes of the court secretary, the court was informed that both parties “have reached a resolution” and the government “agreed to rescind the Policy Directive of July 6, 2020 and the Frequently Asked Questions of July 7, 2020 , and also agreed to rescind its implementation. “
The Harvard and MIT lawsuit had sought a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction preventing the policy from being applied. According to The Harvard Crimson, Harvard had announced days earlier that it would not host more than 40 percent of college students and that it would offer all classes online in the fall.
In a statement to students last week, Harvard President Larry Bacow said the policy “fell without warning, its cruelty was only outweighed by its recklessness.”
“It appears that it was purposely designed to pressure colleges and universities to open their on-campus classrooms for in-person instruction this fall, regardless of the health and safety concerns of students, instructors, and others.” , said. .
A coalition of 17 states and the District of Columbia announced Monday that they were also suing the Trump administration in an effort to block the policy, which the lawsuit called “cruel, abrupt and illegal action by the government to expel international students in In the midst of the pandemic it has caused, death and disruption throughout the United States. “
17 STATES, DC DEMAND ADMINISTRATION OF TRUMP DUE TO FOREIGN POLICY CHANGE
The lawsuit claimed that the administration failed to take into account the enormous costs and administrative burden it would impose on schools and that remote learning may not be possible for international students in their home countries.
They also argued that the policy imposes financial harm to colleges and universities, and pressures them to offer in-person classes amid the coronavirus pandemic “or to lose a significant number of international students who will have to leave the country, transfer or withdraw. drop out of school. “
But immigration restrictionists on Tuesday expressed disappointment at the move, with the American Immigration Reform Federation (FAIR) accusing the White House of giving in “under pressure from the business lobby, as well as professors and university administrators who hate everything. about President Trump and immigration restriction. “
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Remember, foreign students are not simply studying abroad in the eyes of companies: they will soon be employed under [Optional Practical Training] they are more attractive to them than American college students struggling to find work, “FAIR chief of government relations RJ Hauman told Fox News.” And on the university front, they are concerned that there is less worldwide demand for astronomically high. tuition fees if classes are online, rather than including residency with a path to employment and permanent immigration. “
Fox News’s Brooke Singman, Kevin Ward and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
