Former US President Donald Trump on Thursday issued a visa ban against new foreign students who aspire to join Harvard University, heightening his administration’s long-standing battle with the Ivy League university.
The action, announced Wednesday, is the latest salvo in Trump’s campaign to stifle higher education institutions he has long targeted for criticism. “I have determined that it is necessary to restrict the entry of foreign nationals who seek to enter the United States solely or principally to participate in a course of study at Harvard University or in an exchange visitor program hosted by Harvard University,” Trump said in a formal statement.
The new executive order invoked a legal power other than one once invoked—and then blocked by a federal court—to prohibit international student admissions to Harvard. Just last week, a Boston federal court rejected the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) move to prohibit international students from joining the university.
But Trump’s latest move bypasses that ruling, inviting renewed legal scrutiny and diplomatic concern.
In the past month, the US Department of State had also instructed American consulates across the globe to make all visa applicants who plan to attend Harvard undergo additional screening procedures.
Tensions rose between Harvard and the Trump administration following claims that the university had refused to cooperate with a number of federal requests, including handing over documents regarding purported misconduct by foreign students. DHS officials alleged that Harvard’s refusal was “obstruction of national interest,” although the university has denied any wrongdoing.
The move is part of larger attempts by Trump and Republican legislators to hold top academic institutions accountable. Critics contend that the actions are politically driven and pose a risk to academic freedom.
The visa restriction followed previous punitive actions. In April, the Trump administration cut $450 million in federal grants to Harvard after freezing more than $2.2 billion in funding. Republican lawmakers introduced legislation at the same time to increase taxation of university endowments, which would disproportionately affect Harvard and other elite schools.
Trump has also threatened to strip Harvard of its tax-exempt status, alleging that the university has failed to guard Jewish students following the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel. He has accused the university of creating a hostile environment for Jewish students—something the university emphatically denies.
In turn to the growing measures, Harvard has amplified its lawsuit against the Trump government, contending that the freeze of federal funding and latest visa curbs amount to “unconstitutional overreach” and an immediate threat to the independence of the university.
Legal analysts anticipated that the case will make it to higher courts, even making it to the US Supreme Court, as important constitutional and academic freedom issues are at stake.
Neither Harvard University nor the Trump campaign has made any further statement on the visa ban to date.
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