New Immigration Measures Lead to Travel, Visa Uncertainty
/Travel Ban Executive Order Released
Through a recent Executive Order, the Administration has restricted foreign nationals from certain countries from entry into the United States, effective June 9, 2025.
Citing national security concerns and high “visa overstay rates,” the Administration has suspended entry to the US for nationals of Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.
In a more limited measure, the Administration has also suspended entry to the US on immigrant visas and B-1, B-2, F, M, or J visas for nationals of Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.
Limited Scope, Expansive Exceptions: It is important to note that the above restrictions ONLY apply to those who are both outside of the US and without a valid visa on the effective date of June 9, 2025. Further, the Order exempts nationals from the above countries who are US lawful permanent residents, are dual nationals (and using the passport) of a non-restricted country, immediate relative immigrant visa applicants, holders of certain diplomatic visas, or athletes, coaches, and family members of those traveling for major sporting events.
The bottom line:
If you are not a national of any of the above-listed countries, this Executive Order does not apply to you.
If you are a national of any of the above listed countries, you are only impacted if on June 9, 2025, you are outside of the US and without a valid US visa.
If you are impacted as a national of a “total ban” country (first group of countries above), you may be eligible for an exception through the eligibility criteria.
If you are impacted as a national of a “partial ban” country, you are only restricted from applying for certain visas, and in such a case, may be eligible for an exception.
EP Guidance: Regardless of the limited applicability of this Executive Order, Ellis Porter advises non-impacted foreign nationals to use best judgment when it comes to international travel and speak with their attorney.
Targeting Student Visas
Through both Executive Order and Department of State policy, the Administration has threatened revocation of student visas for those it finds to hold interests or affiliations against those of the United States, including Chinese students with perceived ties to the Communist Party, or others who may engage in “unlawful activities.”
Such intentions came to fruition when approximately 1,700 student visas or underlying registrations were revoked, with little to no warning given to individual visa holders. Impacted students reported being unaware of the reason for revocation, but many departed the US regardless without seeking further clarification or redress. Many others have successfully filed suit against the Administration and had their student visa status restored.
What this means: Though the revocation of a visa for a student present in the US may restrict their travel, loss of the necessary student registration (SEVIS) leads to an immediate loss of status, which can have devastating and lasting effects for international students. This also means immediate loss of CPT or OPT work authorization.
EP Guidance: If you hold student (F-1) or exchange (J-1) status in the US and receive notice of revocation or termination from USCIS or DOS, you should immediately contact the ISO at your university, and speak with an immigration attorney. It is very important that you not take immediate action -- such as departing the US or appearing at a DHS office – until you have received the appropriate guidance. Separately, if you are a member of the Chinese Communist Party, we recommend you discuss your membership with your attorney as soon as possible.
Increased Scrutiny of Social Media
The Department of Homeland Security recently announced an immediate practice of enhanced screening of foreign nationals’ social medical accounts, impacting international students, foreign nationals affiliated with educational institutions, and those applying for lawful permanent resident status in the United States. Leaning on numerous Executive Orders under this Administration, DHS cites threats of terrorism and antisemitic ideologies for its increased measures, which would allow DHS to cite any social media content it deems as “endorsing, espousing, promoting, or supporting antisemitic terrorism […] or other antisemitic activity” as a negative discretionary factor when adjudicating an application for permanent resident or student status.
What this means: DHS does not provide guidance on what constitutes antisemitic ideologies or activity, and coupled with the DOS’s recent practice of visa revocation on dubious grounds, these agencies have almost limitless discretion to deny applications for certain immigration benefits.
EP Guidance: If you are not a citizen of the United States, you should be mindful and extremely careful as to what you post on social media, and proceed under the assumption that the government may use what you post against you. Foreign nationals should be extremely careful about posting content regarding any armed or political group engaging in acts of violence abroad, or in acts of violence or civil disobedience in the US.
Caution When Traveling with Electronic Devices
Since certain rights to privacy do not apply near ports of entry, US Customs officers have significant authority when it comes to the search of electronic devices. Taking into account the above-discussed social media scrutiny, it should be expected that Customs Officers will more frequently utilize this discretion, searching the electronic devices of anyone seeking entry to the United States. Since only US citizens are entitled to admission to the US, Customs Officers have the authority to use a foreign national’s unwillingness to cooperate as a grounds to deny entry.
Though US Customs’ policies prohibit officers’ access to cloud-stored data without the owner’s consent, officers may use forensic tools to recover deleted or encrypted data from smartphones, laptops, or tablets, even without cause.
What this means: No matter your country of citizenship or status in the United States, US Customs has the authority and discretion to search anyone’s electronic devices without their consent and without cause. Since this authority extends 100 “air miles” from the border, US Customs has considerable reach to conduct at least a basic search.
EP Guidance: You should take extra precautions with electronic devices when traveling internationally, including either leaving them at home, or moving any sensitive information to the cloud. You should also consider logging out of any apps with sensitive data before traveling. Devices should have encryption enabled with strong passwords and disable biometric access. Even if you are a US citizen and cannot be denied entry to the US, your electronic device can be seized and copied by US Customs.