Trump towards reducing visa duration for journalists and foreign students

The Trump administration has proposed reducing the length of stay in the United States for foreign students and journalists, in a context of tightening restrictions on legal immigration into the country. According to this proposal, foreign nationals holding a student visa would not be allowed to stay more than four years on US soil.

Foreign journalists, for their part, would be limited to stays of 240 days, although they could apply for renewals for identical periods. Only Chinese journalists would be limited to 90 days. Until now, the US would grant visas for the duration of a student's study programme and up to five years for a journalist. These visas, called 'non-immigrant' category visas, have a maximum duration of 10 years. If implemented, this measure would affect journalists accredited to hundreds of foreign media outlets in the United States.

According to US government data, there were approximately 1.6 million international students on F visas in the United States in 2024. The United States granted visas to approximately 355,000 exchange visitors and 13,000 members of the media in the 2024 fiscal year, which began on 1 October 2023.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry, when questioned on Thursday about the proposed new rule for Chinese journalists, said it opposed 'discriminatory practices by the United States against specific countries'.

The Trump administration stated in the proposed regulation that the change was necessary to better 'monitor and supervise' visa holders during their stay in the US.