On Friday, May 29, President Trump published a Proclamation on the Suspension of Entry as Nonimmigrants of Certain Students and Researchers from the People’s Republic of China. This proclamation goes into effect at noon EST on June 1 and will remain in effect until terminated by the President. ISSS wants you to know that we are following this development and can provide you with the following limited information at this time.
What we know:
This proclamation intends to restrict the entry to the United States of students and exchange visitors for study or research if they have connections to any institution that supports China’s “military-civil fusion strategy”, defined as a national of the PRC seeking entry as an F or J visa holder to study or research, and who either receives funding from or who currently is employed by, studies at, or conducts research at or on behalf of, or has been employed by, studied at, or conducted research at or on behalf of, an entity in the PRC that implements or supports the PRC’s “military-civil fusion strategy”.
This proclamation does not apply to students coming for undergraduate study, to those who are studying or conducting research in a field “involving information that would not contribute to the PRC’s military-civil fusion strategy”, permanent residents of the United States, to someone who is the spouse of a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, and limited other exception categories.
The proclamation keeps open the possibility for other future changes. It directs appropriate government agencies to consider revoking the visas of PRC nationals who meet the identified criteria, and are currently located in the United States, to review in the next 60 days other nonimmigrant and immigrant visa programs to assess whether measures should be taken to protect access to sensitive technologies and intellectual property, and for government agencies to consider issuing updated regulations and guidance to implement the new provisions.
What we don’t know:
We do not know a lot about how the order will impact you, the students and researchers. For example, the proclamation does not tell us how individuals will be identified as meeting the identified criteria, how that identification will be flagged, or which institutions are considered to support the PRC’s military-civil infusion strategy. We do not know which fields of study in the U.S. will be considered “OK”, or whether students/exchange visitors whose visas are revoked while inside the U.S. will need to leave the country. The proclamation leaves much of the details to still be worked out among the various government agencies who will need to implement the order.
Next Steps:
ISSS will keep international students up to date on the details of this order, and let you know what we can once more information is available. We plan to have a webinar in the coming weeks to address your questions and concerns. While at this time we do not have any specific recommendations for students regarding travel, graduate students and exchange visitors who were considering to travel outside the U.S. may need to consider this proclamation when determining your plans, especially if you study or research in a field that potentially involves sensitive technologies.
Thank you, and we hope to have more information for you soon.