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CAMEROONONLINE.ORG | The Trump administration is preparing a sweeping immigration action that could revoke the business and tourist visas of as many as 200,000 foreign nationals who have applied for asylum in the United States.
According to State Department documents and U.S. officials cited by the Associated Press, the administration is considering revoking B1 and B2 visas issued between 2016 and 2026 to people who later sought asylum. If carried out at the projected scale, the move would represent the largest mass visa revocation in U.S. history.
B1 visas are generally used for short-term business travel, while B2 visas cover tourism, family visits and certain medical travel. The administration argues that people who enter on these temporary visas and subsequently seek asylum may have misrepresented their original intention to visit the country temporarily.
State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said the agency is working with the Department of Homeland Security to identify cases in which travelers entered as short-term visitors and later applied to remain permanently through the asylum system. Officials say the revocations would be conducted on a rolling basis, meaning the final number of people affected remains uncertain.
Importantly, losing a B1 or B2 visa would not automatically mean immediate deportation. People with pending asylum claims could remain in the asylum process but would no longer retain their status as business or tourist visa holders. The proposed policy is also expected to face legal challenges if implemented.
The proposal fits into a broader tightening of visa and immigration policies during President Donald Trump’s second term. The administration has expanded social-media screening for visa applicants, imposed additional financial requirements in some cases and restricted visa issuance for citizens of certain countries. Current B1 and B2 applicants are also being required to affirm that they do not intend to seek asylum and that they plan to return home after their visit.
The State Department has already revoked roughly 175,000 visas over the previous 18 months for a variety of reasons, including criminal allegations or convictions and, in some cases, conduct or public statements deemed grounds for revocation. The new asylum-related initiative could substantially exceed that figure on its own.
What Happens Next?
The policy has not yet been finalized. The State Department is expected to move forward in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security unless the plan is revised or blocked through legal action.
For visa holders and asylum applicants, the distinction is important: the proposal focuses on cancelling temporary visitor visas, not automatically terminating asylum applications. Still, a mass revocation involving potentially hundreds of thousands of people would mark a significant escalation in the administration’s effort to reshape how temporary visas and asylum claims interact.
