• The What: On Saturday, April 5, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that the Department of State is taking actions to revoke all visas held by South Sudanese passport holders and prevent further issuance to prevent entry into the United States by South Sudanese passport holders.

• The Impact: While SEVIS states that there are currently only 138 South Sudanese students currently in the U.S., the order is the first time Trump has targeted the citizens of one country with such a blanket measure.

• The What: On Wednesday, March 26, Secretary of State Marco Rubio sent a cable instructing consular officers to refer certain student and exchange visitor visa applicants for a mandatory social media review. F, J, and M visa applicants that fit one or more of the following criteria will be subject to this enhanced vetting:

1) An applicant who is eligible and that the officer has reason to believe has openly advocated for a designated foreign terrorist organization;
2) An applicant who was previously in the U.S. on an F-1, J-1, or M-1 visa between October 7, 2023 and August 31, 2024; or
3) An applicant whose previous SEVIS record was terminated between October 7, 2023 and now.

• The Impact: If an applicant is found to have supported terrorist activities or organizations during this review, they will no longer eligible for a visa. The guidance gives wide discretion to consular officers to determine what qualifies as evidence supporting terrorist activity or demonstrating public approval for a terrorist organization. 

• The What: On Friday, March 14, the Department of State published a determination notice that “all efforts to control the status, entry, and exit of people across the borders of the United States constitute a foreign affairs function of the United States” and therefore are covered under the “foreign affairs exception” to the Administrative Procedure Act, which outlines the rulemaking and public notification process.

• The What: On Tuesday, February 18, the Department of State updated its policy on the eligibility requirements for a visa interview waiver. The policy is now that J and F visa applicants are eligible for an interview waiver only if they already have a previously issued a J or F visa that expired less than 12 months prior to the new application and are applying for a renewed J or F visa. This is different from the previous policy that provided eligibility for an applicant that had any nonimmigrant visa issued within the last 48 months.   

• The What: On Thursday, February 13, 2025, the U.S. State Department informed grantees that a temporary 15-day pause on federal funding for all current and future State Department FY25 grant disbursements had gone into effect as of Wednesday, February 12. 

• The Impact: Distribution of grants for educational and cultural exchange (ECE) programs falls under this pause. 

• The Latest: As of Friday, March 28, Alliance members have received over 85% of outstanding DOS payments that had been withheld due to the ongoing funding freeze.

• The What: On Wednesday, February 12, the White House nominated New York lawyer Sarah Rogers to be Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy.  

• The Latest: On Wednesday, April 9, nominee Rogers spoke about exchange programs in her statement to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee during her nomination hearing. Rogers nomination will now move for a confirmation vote by the Senate, though timing on that vote is unclear. Darren Beattie remain Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Senior Bureau Official for ECA.

• The What: On Inauguration Day, one of President Trump’s first Executive Orders (EOs) instructed the Department of Homeland Security to enforce Section 262 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), also known as The Alien Registration Act of 1940. This longstanding provision requires all foreign nationals aged 14 and older who reside in the U.S. for more than 30 days to register and be fingerprinted—unless they have already completed this step during their visa application process. 

  Following this EO, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a page on their website outlining the details of the Alien Registration Requirement, sharing which individuals must register or re-register with the Federal government and how they can do so. USCIS also published an Interim Final Rule effective April 11, 2025 that requires nonimmigrants who turn 14 while in the U.S. to re-register within 30 days of their birthday, even if they were previously registered and issued an I-94 Form when entering the country. 

• The Impact: Read more about the impact here.

• The What: On Saturday, March 1, the White House released a new Executive Order establishing English as the official language of the U.S. 

• The Impact: The order allows government agencies and organizations that receive federal funding to choose whether they want to offer documents and services in languages other than English and revokes a previously established mandate that that directed federal agencies to provide language assistance to non-English speakers.  

• The What: On Wednesday, February 26, the president signed an Executive Order implementing DOGE activities in the administration. Section 3 of the order allows for DOGE to review, negotiate, and terminate or modify “all existing covered contracts and grants” in accordance with the Administration’s policies. 

• The What: On Tuesday, February 18, the White House released a new Executive Order that expands presidential power over independent agencies, requiring agencies to run rulemaking and regulatory changes by the White House and removes the protections for agency heads laid out by the Supreme Court that said the president does not have the power to fire them.  

• The Latest: It is yet unclear if any legal action will follow this order. There is currently litigation about the firing of the Office of the Special Counsel.

• The What: On Wednesday, February 12, 2025, the White House released a new Executive Order stating, “All officers or employees charged with implementing the foreign policy of the United States must under Article II do so under the direction and authority of the President.” 

• The Impact: U.S. embassies around the world are starting to prepare for staff reductions. 

• The What: A White House memo was released yesterday that directs “the heads of executive departments and agencies (agencies) to review all funding that agencies provide to NGOs.” This article from The Hill provides additional information. 

• The What: This EO prioritizes patriotic education in k-12 schools that receive federal funding. 

• The Impact: In section 5, it directs the Department of State through Fulbright, IVLP, the U.S. Speaker program, and American Spaces to support in promoting patriotic education through their exchange programs and activities. 

• The What: The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a two-page memo ordering a freeze of all agency grants, loans, or other financial assistance programs. OMB sent an 800+ page task spreadsheet to agencies to submit by Feb. 10 the details of all such grants. 

• The Latest: On Tuesday, February 25, Judge Loren AliKhan issued a preliminary injunction barring the government from “implementing, giving effect to, or reinstating under a different name” the broad freeze on all government grants and loans originally attempted at the end of January. It expands her previous temporary block on the freeze. The injunction orders defendants to provide a status report on or before February 28 indicating how they are complying with this order. 

• The What: The EO calls for the “termination of all discriminatory programs, including illegal DEI and “diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility” (DEIA) mandates, policies, programs, preferences, and activities in the Federal Government, under whatever name they appear.” 
• The Latest: On Monday, March 10, U.S. District Judge Adam Abelson clarified that his February 21 preliminary injunction blocking the Trump administration from terminating or changing federal contracts they consider equity-related applies to all federal agencies, not just those named in the original lawsuit.

• The Impact: Under this executive order, U.S. passports and Consular Reports of Birth Abroad (CRBAs) will no longer be issued with an X gender marker. Passports will only be issued with an M or F marker, reflecting the applicant’s biological sex at birth. For more information, including FAQs, visit the Department of State’s website.   

• The What: This EO calls for suspending admission from countries where “vetting and screening information is deficient”; and for an evaluation of all visa programs to ensure they aren’t being used by “hostile actors.”  

• The Impact: This is widely perceived as a potential precursor to a travel ban. 

• The What: This wide-ranging EO asserts that failure or delay by a country to accept individuals the U.S. seeks to deport could be met by “sanctions.”  

• The Impact: This could include halting U.S. visa issuance for that country. 

• The What: This EO orders “a 90-day pause in United States foreign development assistance for assessment of programmatic efficiencies and consistency with United States foreign policy.” 
• The Impact: Based on available information at this time, this does not apply to DOS Educational and Cultural Exchanges (ECE) funding, but does impact certain exchange programs funded by other sources, such as Embassies, USAID, and more.
• The Latest: On Friday, March 28, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily lifted a lower ruling, enabling the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to resume efforts to dismantle USAID. 

• The What: This memorandum states that agencies cannot “propose or issue any rule in any manner…until a department or agency head appointed or designated by the President…reviews and approves the rule.” 

• The Impact: The Alliance reads this as no new regulatory actions will take place until an Assistant Secretary for ECA is confirmed. 

• The What: The bill, which garnered significant bipartisan support, puts into statute the ability of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to detain and deport undocumented immigrants who have been accused or convicted of crimes.  

• The Impact: The bill includes language that provides states the authority to sue the State Department to stop the issuance of visas to countries that are slow to, or do not accept, their nationals who the U.S. seeks to deport. 

• The Latest: President Trump signed the act into law the afternoon of Wednesday, January 29. 

• The Latest: On Saturday, March 15, President Trump signed into law legislation funding the government through the end of September, ending the threat of a partial government shutdown.
• The Impact: Concerns regarding funding cuts and shifts over the next six months remain. This continuing resolution, unlike those previously passed, does not include accompanying reports that detail with great specificity how money should be spent, leaving room for the Trump Administration to redirect funds as they see fit. Additional reporting reveals that the Trump Administration has already started mapping out how to make good on its promise to slash federal spending ahead of the CR passing.

• The What: NAFSA is tracking reports of international students and scholars who have had their visas revoked and/or their records terminated in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS).

• The Impact: As of April 18, more than 1,400 reports of international students and scholars who have had their visas revoked and/or their records terminated in SEVIS have been recorded. There continues to be no clear pattern, trend, or transparency into the grounds for the reported revocations, and a total lack of due process.