U.S. Plans Mass Revocation of 200,000 Business and Tourist Visas Held by Asylum Seekers

The United States is moving to revoke the business and tourist visas of as many as 200,000 foreign nationals who have either applied for asylum or are in the process of seeking it.

The State Department is expected to announce the measure in the coming weeks, working alongside the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the report said.

The action would specifically target B1 and B2 visas issued between 2016 and 2026 that were granted to individuals who have since filed for asylum or are currently doing so.

“We are working with DHS to locate and cancel the nonimmigrant visas of individuals who entered the U.S. posing as short-term visitors but later submitted asylum applications in order to remain permanently,” said State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott.

Officials speaking to the AP noted that the visa cancellations would not automatically result in deportation. Instead, most individuals with pending asylum cases would be placed into a different immigration category, effectively removing their visitor status while their claims are reviewed.

In a post on X Monday, Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau criticised those he said exploit tourist and business visas as a backdoor to enter the country and pursue asylum. “People in the U.S. and around the globe are tired of fraudulent asylum claims,” Landau wrote. “Asylum was never intended to be a way around immigration laws.“

Since President Donald Trump began his second term last year, his administration has progressively tightened visa requirements demanding deeper social media checks, imposing costly bonds for visa processing, and outright visas for nationals of select countries.