New Trump Administration trend: DOS revokes visas for minor law enforcement encounters

Our office and numerous colleagues in the American Immigration Lawyers Association have noticed a new alarming trend with the State Department revoking the visas of foreign nationals who have had minor or not fully adjudicated law enforcement encounters. By visa, we mean the physical visa foil that is printed in a foreign national's passport, and not a foreign national's actual immigration status, making this solely an issue with a foreign national’s ability to return to the United States after international travel. In many of these situations, the law enforcement encounter would not typically be grounds for a visa revocation. These revocations are occurring both while foreign nationals are in the United States and after they have departed for international travel. ‍

In light of this new trend, we would like to remind foreign nationals that there is always some level of risk present when traveling internationally. If you have had any prior encounters with law enforcement, this risk has risen significantly under the current administration. We will continue to provide updates on this trend as we receive them.