Chinese students anxious and angry after Rubio vows to revoke visas
[May 29, 2025]
By FU TING, KANIS LEUNG, and HUIZHONG WU
HONG KONG (AP) — Chinese students studying in the U.S. are scrambling to
figure out their futures after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio
announced Wednesday that some students would have their visas revoked.
The U.S. will begin revoking the visas of some Chinese students,
including those studying in “critical fields", and "those with
connections to the Chinese Communist Party," according to the
announcement.
China is the second-largest country of origin for international students
in the United States, behind only India. In the 2023-2024 school year,
more than 270,000 international students were from China, making up
roughly a quarter of all foreign students in the U.S.
This is a “new version of Chinese Exclusion Act,” said Linqin, a Chinese
student at Johns Hopkins University, who asked to be identified only by
his first name out of fear of retaliation. He was referring to a
19th-century law that prohibited Chinese from immigrating to the U.S.
and banned Chinese people already in the U.S. from getting citizenship.
He said Wednesday was the first time he thought about leaving the U.S.
after spending one third of his life here.
Chinese international students are point of tension between U.S. and
China
China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, called the U.S.
decision unreasonable.
“Such a politicized and discriminatory action lays bare the U.S. lie
that it upholds the so-called freedom and openness," she said Thursday,
adding that China has lodged a protest with the U.S.
The issue of Chinese students studying overseas has long been a point of
tension in the bilateral relationship. During Trump’s first term, in
2019, China’s Ministry of Education warned students about visa issues in
the U.S., with rising rejection rates and shortening of visas.
Last year, the Chinese Foreign Ministry protested that a number of
Chinese students have been unfairly interrogated and sent home upon
arrival at U.S. airports.
Chinese state media has long hyped gun violence in the U.S. and violent
protests during the pandemic, and portrayed the U.S. as a dangerous
place that wasn’t safe for its citizens. The tense bilateral
relationship has also meant that some Chinese students are opting to
study in the U.K. or other countries over the U.S. after the pandemic.
Zou Renge, a 27-year-old public policy master's student at the
University of Chicago, said she had planned to take some time off and
work in humanitarian aid programs abroad after graduating at the end of
this year.
But now, she will refrain from leaving the U.S. and will look for jobs
in the meantime. “In a very uncertain environment, I’ll try my best to
find myself a solution,” she said.
Hong Kong seeks to draw in talent amid uncertainty
Some were eager to capitalize on the uncertainty facing international
students in the U.S. Hong Kong’s leader John Lee told lawmakers on
Thursday that the city would welcome any students who have been
discriminated against by American policies to study in the city.
“The students who face unfair treatment can come from different
countries beyond the U.S. I think this is an opportunity for Hong Kong,”
he said. “We will work with our universities to provide the best support
and assistance.”
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American flags are displayed together with Chinese flags on top of a
trishaw on Sept. 16, 2018, in Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong, File)
That followed a widely shared post by the Hong Kong University of
Science and Technology inviting Harvard students to “continue their
academic pursuits” there after Trump said he would revoke the
university's ability to accept international students.
Hong Kong, a former British colony that returned to China in 1997,
is a popular destination for mainland Chinese students to pursue
their university degrees because of its international image and
relative freedoms.
The city launched a new visa scheme in 2022 to counter the exodus of
expatriates and local professionals that occurred after Beijing
imposed a national security law to quell dissent and during the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Kitty Wu, director of education consultancy Litz USA Student Service
in Hong Kong, said some students who planned to apply to American
universities in the future are now also considering the University
of Hong Kong, the city’s top university and an option because of its
high ranking — something that had not happened before.
“Things are different every day now, we don’t know how things will
change in the future, so we don’t know the impact for next year,”
she said.
Will Kwong, managing director at Hong Kong's AAS Education
Consultancy, said his company was helping students with offers from
American universities to apply to other institutions, predominantly
in Britain and Australia.
U.S. was known for diversity and this will hurt it, students say
“Having fewer international exchanges is definitely not good for
America’s development,” said Zhang Qi, a postdoctoral fellow in
Beijing. "This could be a positive change for China’s development.
More talented individuals may choose to stay at Tsinghua or Peking
University, or with the Chinese Academy of Sciences and other top
institutions in China, which would benefit the development of
domestic science and technology.”
For many, there is little they can do as they now wait for the
fallout from the move.
Chen, an incoming Chinese student at Purdue University who only gave
his last name out of concern for retaliation by the Trump
administration, has been waiting anxiously for his visa approval.
But he was also angry. Currently in China, he said this was the
exact opposite of what he thought the U.S. stood for.
“I was expecting freedom and tolerance. The U.S. was known for its
diversity which allows international students to fit in, but it is a
pity to see such kind of change," he said.
—-
Fu Ting reported from Washington, Wu from Bangkok. Associated Press
researcher Shihuan Chen and video producer Olivia Zhang contributed
to this report from Beijing.
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