Visa and immigration policy: Revocation of university SEVP certification

DHS wielded student visas as weapon in campaign against Harvard

In spring 2025, the Trump administration began a campaign against Harvard University, alongside other universities, leveraging federal power to try to impose its priorities on university policies. One of the administration’s key targets was campus activists protesting Israel’s military activity in Gaza, with the administration portraying protests as suffused with antisemitism, illegal conduct, and violence.¹

On April 16, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem sent a letter to Harvard demanding it yield information about all their international students’ activities that were “illegal,” “dangerous,” “violent,” or that deprived other students of their rights. The letter arrived amid a concurrent campaign by the administration to deport students who had engaged in activism, and it stated that Harvard’s failure to provide the information would constitute its “voluntary withdrawal” from the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP).²

Academic institutions that wish to host international students and visiting researchers must be first certified by SEVP, which is within the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency. Maintaining this certification requires the institution to report to the federal government about their international students and ensure they are properly maintaining lawful student status. Removing Harvard from SEVP would render it unable to host international students and researchers. About a quarter of all students currently at Harvard are from abroad.³

While Harvard did submit responding information on April 30, the administration accused the university of failing to fully comply and revoked its certification on May 22, 2025.⁴

Trump reinforces revocation, but federal action is blocked as litigation continues

On May 23, Harvard filed a lawsuit in federal court against DHS, arguing it failed to engage in due process prior to removing certification. According to Harvard’s complaint, DHS “did not explain why … let alone identify any actual noncompliance with the governing regulations or follow any of the detailed processes required under the regulations prior to revoking” the certification.⁵

Then, on June 5, President Trump issued a proclamation suspending for six months entry to the US for holders of F, M, and J visas who were participating in programs at Harvard.⁶ Under 8 USC 1182(f), the president has a very broad authority to bar foreign nationals’ entry to the US.⁷ Citing Harvard’s response to DHS’s records request, the proclamation stated:

The proclamation also cited Harvard’s connections to foreign countries, including China, as well as its loss in the Supreme Court decision Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, which held affirmative action in university admissions to be discriminatory.

Harvard immediately secured a court order preventing the proclamation from going into effect as well a longer-term injunction on June 23.⁸ The court also blocked the removal of Harvard’s SEVP certification on June 20 and permitted the university to continue to admit international students while the case progressed.⁹ DHS announced on August 6 that it would not enforce the letter revoking SEVP certification to simplify the litigation.¹⁰

Litigation over Trump’s proclamation remains ongoing.¹¹ Harvard argues the proclamation is plainly directed at Harvard rather than foreign nationals, who would be free to enter if they were associated with another institution. It asserts, “The President enjoys deference when he exercises foreign affairs and related authorities vis-à-vis the vast external realm, but when he trains those same authorities on domestic entities in contexts where domestic laws (up to and including the Constitution) constrain him, those pleas for deference are misplaced.”¹²

A number of amicus curiae briefs have been submitted in support of Harvard’s case, including one on January 20, 2026, by twenty-three higher-education associations, including the American Council on Education and the Association of American Universities. They hold that the case’s stakes extend well beyond that university, arguing:¹³

Documents

Cite this resource

AIP Policy Research, “Revocation of university SEVP certification,” Visa and immigration policy guide, American Institute of Physics, 2026, https://www.aip.org/research/visa-immigration/sevp-certification-revocation.

Last updated

March 15, 2026