Union: Five University of Iowa students have had visas revoked

IOWA CITY — Days after the University of Iowa confirmed the U.S. Department of State had canceled the visa of at least one graduate student, a campus union on Tuesday reported five UI international students now have had their visas revoked.

“Federal officials have now revoked the visas of five University of Iowa students, per a webinar hosted by Russell Ganim, dean of International Programs,” according to a Tuesday morning press release from the UI Campaign to Organize Graduate Students union.

COGS noted in its release that the revocations don’t necessarily mean a student’s ability to stay in the country has been revoked or that their student status has been altered.

“This authoritarianism should be resisted by all people of conscience in whatever capacity they are able,” according to COGS.

Both Iowa State University and University of Northern Iowa on Monday confirmed with The Gazette that they also have students who’ve been flagged in the federal Student Exchange and Visitor Information System — through which visas are being revoked.

“UNI has notified students impacted by SEVIS flags,” UNI spokesman Pete Moris said. “For privacy reasons, we cannot provide additional details.”

“The university is aware of students who have been impacted,” Iowa State spokeswoman Angie Hunt said. “But for privacy reasons we cannot provide any additional detail.”

When pressed Monday for further details about UI students who’ve been impacted, campus officials similarly said, “We are aware of students who have been impacted, but for privacy reasons we cannot provide any detail.”

News of the Iowa revocations come amid reports nationally from nearly 1,300 international students and scholars who say their visas were revoked or their records in the federal exchange and visitor system were terminated, according to an ongoing tally by the NAFSA Association of International Educators.

Although reasons for the revocations have been hard to come by, attorneys and advocates nationally have said people who protested in support of Palestinians, had prior arrests, or have made political social media posts seem to have been swept up.

Some attorneys have theorized the federal government is retaliating against universities it doesn’t think handled pro-Palestinian protests well.

National revocations, lawsuits

International students can study in the United States on one of three types of visa:

Homeland Security reports the total number of active F-1 and M-1 students reached 1.5 million in 2023 — up 10 percent over 2022 and the highest since the pre-pandemic calendar year of 2019.

As of March 2025, Iowa had 9,415 active international students, according to Homeland Security. That’s fewer than some of its neighbors — like Illinois’ 53,688 active international students and Missouri’s 22,922 — but more than Nebraska’s 4,316 and South Dakota’s 1,912.

Looking at the top 500 schools for F-1 visas in 2023, Iowa State reported 3,749 and UI had 1,944.

Students nationally have filed class action lawsuits accusing Immigration and Customs Enforcement of changing visa statuses illegally. Many students involved in the lawsuits report having interacted with law enforcement at some point — including minor infractions like traffic stops and speeding tickets, according to national media reports.

But others — like a Dartmouth College student who had his F-1 immigration status terminated without explanation — said he never committed a crime, had a traffic violation, or participated in any protest, according to an ACLU lawsuit.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said international students engaged in political activity will have their visas revoked — and he’s using artificial intelligence to comb through criminal records of students with visas.

But attorneys have said students they’re representing didn’t break any law and were never charged or convicted of a crime — making the revocations and terminations illegal.

‘Still reason for concern’

In sharing news of the five UI visas revoked Tuesday, COGS said UI Dean Ganim reported senior international officers of the Big Ten met last week about the changes.

“Asked under what conditions a student’s petitions for visa reinstatement would not be supported, officials on the webinar said there is likely to be less support if there is a criminal record and arrest,” according to the COGS release. “If these infractions are minor, there is still potential for university support of reinstatement.”

Acknowledging ICE is tying visa revocations to vague law enforcement encounters or innocuous speeding tickets, COGS reported UI International Students and Scholars Services “is trying to use this lack of specificity to argue against visa revocation.”

“Asked whether international students and scholars with no civil or criminal violations should be concerned, university officials suggested there is still reason for concern given the somewhat random nature with which student visas are targeted,” according to COGS, which added, “University officials say ICE has not encountered UI students whose visas have currently been revoked.”

COGS reported, “The University of Iowa currently has no structure in place to notify the public regarding the number of students whose visas have been affected, though officials said they are working on this.”

The campus — like Iowa State — has continued to update a “2025 federal updates” website listing executive orders that “appear to be related to international students.”

Iowa State, on its immigration updates page on April 9, reported the Department of Homeland Security would “begin screening aliens’ social media activity for antisemitism.”

“Under this guidance, (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services) will consider social media content that indicates an alien endorsing, espousing, promoting, or supporting antisemitic terrorism, antisemitic terrorist organizations, or other antisemitic activity as a negative factor in any USCIS discretionary analysis when adjudicating immigration benefit requests.”

On April 5, according to another of the federal updates posted by Iowa State, the U.S. Department of State began revoking all visas held by South Sudanese passport holders — accusing South Sudan’s transitional government of failing to accept the return of its citizens in a timely manner when the United States seeks to remove them.

Iowa State in the fall reported four international students from Sudan — three undergraduates and one graduate student — but none from South Sudan. The University of Iowa, likewise, in the fall reported three Sudanese students among its total 2,084 international students — but none from South Sudan.

‘A time to stand’

Iowa State in the fall reported a total 2,878 international students, and UNI has 203 international students.

On Friday, UNI sent a message to its international community acknowledging the concern recent visa revocations have caused among international students.

“We want to assure you that your well-being and success are of utmost importance, and we are here to support you,” according to the message from the UNI Office of International Engagement. “We are closely monitoring issues that affect international students. The UNI Office of International Engagement is checking the SEVIS database regularly and will reach out if we see a change in status for any current students.”

In listing student responsibilities, UNI urged students to maintain visa requirements like full-time enrollment, carry a paper copy of their registration at all times, attend mandatory meetings, and keep administrators informed of any changes in address.

“This is a scary time,” the UI COGS union wrote in its news release Tuesday, warning international students about the risk of travel.

“It is also a time to stand for justice and against those in power.”

Vanessa Miller covers higher education for The Gazette.

Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com