International students stripped of legal status in the US are piling up
wins in court
[April 23, 2025]
By KATE BRUMBACK
ATLANTA (AP) — Anjan Roy was studying with friends at Missouri State
University when he got an email that turned his world upside down. His
legal status as an international student had been terminated, and he was
suddenly at risk for deportation.
“I was in literal shock, like, what the hell is this?” said Roy, a
graduate student in computer science from Bangladesh.
At first, he avoided going out in public, skipping classes and mostly
keeping his phone turned off. A court ruling in his favor led to his
status being restored this week, and he has returned to his apartment,
but he is still asking his roommates to screen visitors.
More than a thousand international students have faced similar
disruptions in recent weeks, with their academic careers — and their
lives in the U.S. — thrown into doubt in a widespread crackdown by the
Trump administration. Some have found a measure of success in court,
with federal judges around the country issuing orders to restore
students' legal status at least temporarily.
In addition to the case filed in Atlanta, where Roy is among 133
plaintiffs, judges have issued temporary restraining orders in states
including New Hampshire, Wisconsin, Montana, Oregon and Washington.
Judges have denied similar requests in some other cases, saying it was
not clear the loss of status would cause irreparable harm.
International students challenge grounds for their status revocation
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last month the State Department was
revoking visas held by visitors who were acting counter to national
interests, including some who protested Israel’s war in Gaza and those
who face criminal charges. But many affected students said they have
been involved only in minor infractions, or it's unclear altogether why
they were targeted.
The attorney for Roy and his fellow plaintiffs, Charles Kuck, argued the
government did not have legal grounds to terminate the students’ status.
He speculated in court last week the government is trying to encourage
these students to self-deport, saying “the pressure on these students is
overwhelming.” He said some asked him if it was safe to leave their
homes to get food, and others worried they wouldn't receive a degree
after years of work or feared their chances of a career in the U.S. were
shot.
“I think the hope is they’ll just leave,” Kuck said. “The reality is
these kids are invested.”
An attorney for the government, R. David Powell, argued the students did
not suffer significant harm because they could transfer their academic
credits or find jobs in another country.
At least 1,100 students at 174 colleges, universities and university
systems have had their visas revoked or their legal status terminated
since late March, according to an Associated Press review of university
statements, correspondence with school officials and court records. The
AP is working to confirm reports of hundreds more students who are
caught up in the crackdown.
In a lawsuit filed Monday by four people on student visas at the
University of Iowa, attorneys detail the “mental and financial
suffering” they’ve experienced. One graduate student, from India,
"cannot sleep and is having difficulty breathing and eating,” the
lawsuit reads. He has stopped going to school, doing research or working
as a teaching assistant. Another student, a Chinese undergraduate who
expected to graduate this December, said his revoked status has caused
his depression to worsen to the point that his doctor increased his
medication dosage. The student, the lawsuit says, has not left his
apartment out of fear of detention.
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In this image taken from video, immigration lawyer Charles Kuck
speaks to reporters outside a federal courthouse in Atlanta, on
April 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Kate Brumback)
Tiny infractions made students targets for the crackdown
Roy, 23, began his academic career at Missouri State in August 2024
as an undergraduate computer science student. He was active in the
chess club and a fraternity and has a broad circle of friends. After
graduating in December, he began work on a master’s degree in
January and expects to finish in May 2026.
When Roy received the university's April 10 email on his status
termination, one of his friends offered to skip class to go with him
to the school’s international services office, even though they had
a quiz in 45 minutes. The staff there said a database check showed
his student status had been terminated, but they didn’t know why.
Roy said his only brush with the law came in 2021, when he was
questioned by campus security after someone called in a dispute at a
university housing building. But he said an officer determined there
was no evidence of any crime and no charges were filed.
Roy also got an email from the U.S. embassy in Bangladesh telling
him his visa had been revoked and that he could be detained at any
time. It warned that if he was deported, he could be sent to a
country other than his own. Roy thought about leaving the U.S. but
decided to stay after talking to a lawyer.
Anxious about being in his own apartment, Roy went to stay with his
second cousin and her husband nearby.
“They were scared someone was going to pick me up from the street
and take me somewhere that they wouldn’t even know,” Roy said.
He mostly stayed inside, turned off his phone unless he needed to
use it, and avoided internet browsers that track user data through
cookies. His professors were understanding when he told them he
wouldn’t be able to come to classes for a while, he said.
New doubts about students' future in the US
After the judge’s order Friday, he moved back to his apartment. He
learned Tuesday his status had been restored, and he plans to return
to class. But he’s still nervous. He asked his two roommates, both
international students, to let him know before they open the door if
someone they don’t know knocks.
The judge’s restoration of his legal status is temporary. Another
hearing scheduled for Thursday will determine whether he keeps that
status while the litigation continues.
Roy chose the U.S. over other options in Canada and Australia
because of the research opportunities and potential for professional
connections, and he ultimately wanted to teach at an American
university. But now those plans are up in the air.
His parents, back in Dhaka, have been watching the news and are
“freaked out,” he said. His father mentioned to him that they have
family in Melbourne, Australia, including a cousin who’s an
assistant professor at a university there. ___
AP reporters Christopher L. Keller in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and
Hannah Fingerhut in Des Moines, Iowa, contributed to this story.
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