Rubio may have revoked thousands of visas as crackdown continues

21/5/2025 6:12

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday the number of visas he has revoked was probably in the thousands, adding that he believed there was

still more to do.



Republican President Donald Trump's administration has sought to ramp up deportations and revoke student visas as part of its wide-ranging efforts to fulfill his hardline immigration agenda.



"I don't know the latest count, but we probably have more to do," Rubio told a Senate appropriations subcommittee that oversees foreign affairs.



Asked to give an estimate, he said it was probably in the thousands at this point, an increase from March, when he said the State Department may have revoked more than 300 visas.



Rubio said the 300 revoked visas were a combination of student and visitor visas. He said he signed each action.



"A visa is not a right. It's a privilege," Rubio said on Tuesday.



Trump administration officials have said student visa and green card holders are subject to deportation over their support for Palestinians and criticism of Israel's conduct in the war in Gaza, calling their actions a threat to U.S. foreign policy and accusing them of being pro-Hamas.