International students across the United States have filed a federal lawsuit in Georgia, accusing U.S. immigration and customs enforcement agencies of illegally terminating student visas.
Seventeen students claimed that there was no legitimate procedure for termination and stripped them of legal status using the Student Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) despite continuing to comply with the Visa Terms.
The lawsuit nominates US lawyer Pam Bondy, Homeland Security Secretary Christie Noem and Ice Director Todd Lyons as defendants.
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The exterior of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Agency Headquarters in Washington, DC. We (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
In the suit, the plaintiff states that, after vague references to visa revocation, the student was “identified in a criminal history check” despite the lack of formal charges, convictions or compulsory crimes in many cases.
One senior at Georgia Tech was notified a few days before graduation, but his only legal record includes rejected travel expenses.
“Ice’s own guidance confirms that the revocation of the visa itself is not the cause of the student’s termination of the Sevis record. Rather, if the visa is revoked, students are permitted to pursue a course of study at school, but Sevis records will be terminated and students must obtain a new visa from comfort or residence abroad before taking the US.
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The lawyer is currently seeking a temporary restraining order to revive the student’s SEVIS registration and restore his legal status.
“The school created confusion as the school tried to understand what was going on and do its best to let students know and advise them,” he said. The lawsuit states that “the plaintiff has the interests of the property protected by the Constitution in the Sevis Registration.”
A university student walking along campus.
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We also note that elimination from the system will not only pose an education but also risk legal residence, employment and re-entry into the US.
“The plaintiffs are not placed in the removal process,” the complaint states. “Ice cannot misuse Sevis to avoid the law, strip students of students of their status and drive them out of the country without a process.”
These include approval of work under the OPT or CPT program, but the court has not yet ruled on the claim for emergency relief.
