The department has already paused new student visa interviews worldwide and is preparing to revoke visas for Chinese nationals currently in the United States.
WASHINGTON—The U.S. State Department is ramping up its scrutiny of all Chinese nationals currently in the United States on a visa, department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce announced on May 29.
The State Department has made several shifts to visa policies this week.
On May 27, the department confirmed Secretary of State Marco Rubio had issued an internal instruction for embassies around the world to immediately pause student visa interviews as it prepares new vetting guidance. The following day, Rubio confirmed the United States would begin revoking visas for Chinese students with ties to the Chinese Communist Party or who are studying in critical fields.
These growing visa restrictions follow longstanding concerns about Chinese espionage and intellectual property theft targeting U.S. universities and other research centers.
Speaking with reporters at a Thursday press briefing, Bruce noted the expanded vetting process will apply not just to student visa applicants, but to visas for all Chinese nationals, including Hong Kong passport holders. Further, she said the State Department will continue to monitor those who have been approved for a visa.
“Vetting is not a one-time process; it’s continuing,” she said.
Bruce said the Trump administration intends to make clear to Chinese visa holders that it is “taking national security seriously.”
“We are looking at their visas. If everything is fine, terrific. But that will be a vetting that certainly continues, and it is important, clearly, to the administration,” she said.
Bruce declined to provide specifics about any new vetting procedures, and what fields of study or types of Chinese Communist Party ties could lead to Chinese nationals losing their visas, citing issues of privacy as well as the plethora of situations this can involve.
She also declined to offer an estimate for how many Chinese nationals will see their visas revoked under the new policies.
Several Chinese nationals who’ve been admitted into the United States on student visas have faced recent prosecution for alleged spying activities and for misleading U.S. authorities about the nature of their activities inside the United States.
By Ryan Morgan
