Federal Judge Temporarily Halts the Trump Administration’s Ban on Harvard University’s Foreign Student Enrollment

On May 23, 2025, a federal judge issued an Order temporarily blocking the Trump Administration’s termination of Harvard University’s ability to sponsor F-1 and J-1 visas for foreign students and scholars. The Order comes within 24 hours of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)’s announcement that it had revoked Harvard University’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) Certification. This decertification would effectively strip the University’s authority to enroll foreign students for the 2025-2026 academic year, and would impact the F-1 or J-1 status of existing foreign students. According to the DHS letter, the Administration revoked Harvard’s SEVP certification because it did not sufficiently respond to the DHS’ demand for records on foreign students who allegedly engaged in illegal and violent activities on and off campus, and for its continued perpetuation of “an unsafe campus environment that is hostile to Jewish students, promotes pro-Hamas sympathies, and employs racist  ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ policies.”  

What this Means for our Clients

Based on today’s Court Order temporarily enjoining the Administration’s termination of Harvard’s SEVP certification, foreign students currently enrolled at Harvard or working pursuant to OPT programs may continue to study and work at the present time, pending further litigation. We will continue to monitor the ongoing federal case and will provide updates as information becomes available.