The Biden administration, in addition to allowing at least 10 million illegal aliens into the country according to CBP data, failed to deport at least 3,095,577 who had already been encountered. More than 617,000 of these had criminal convictions or pending charges, and 1,323,264 with final deportation orders were still allowed to remain in the United States.
Since President Trump’s inauguration, the State Department has revoked more than twice as many visas as during the same period last year, including nearly four times as many student visas. Building on this trend, the administration has launched a sweeping review of more than 55 million valid U.S. visas under a system of “continuous vetting.”
The review is intended to determine whether visas that were legally issued should remain valid or be revoked. According to the State Department, all current visa holders are subject to screening for overstays, criminal activity, security threats, terrorist links, and other disqualifying factors. If such evidence is found, visas will be revoked, and those already in the United States may face deportation.
The government is on track to deport 400,000 people in 2025, according to New York Times estimates. This effort accompanies widespread raids on restaurants, construction sites, and farms, as well as courthouse arrests of individuals attending civil appointments meant to help legalize their status.
In short, while these individuals currently appear to have valid visas, the ongoing review aims to identify those who may have violated the terms or become ineligible since the visas were granted.
The review covers a wide range of visa categories, including student visas (F-1 and J-1), temporary work visas (H-1B, H-2B, and others), B-1/B-2 tourist and business visas, multiple-entry tourist visas, exchange visitor programs, and other temporary visa types. Large populations from countries not in the Visa Waiver Program—such as China, India, Indonesia, Russia, and most African nations—are also included, since their citizens must apply for visas to travel to the United States.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, there were 12.8 million green-card holders and 3.6 million people in the U.S. on temporary visas last year. The total figure of 55 million under review suggests that many of those being screened are currently outside the country but hold multiple-entry tourist visas that allow them to travel back and forth.
The administration has expanded scrutiny of visa applicants for “anti-American” activity, requiring them to unlock their social media accounts and disable privacy settings on cellphones and apps during interviews. USCIS emphasized that visas are a “privilege, not a right,” and that applicants promoting anti-American or antisemitic ideologies will be denied entry.
Since January, Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s office has reported 6,000 student visas revoked. Of these, about 4,000 were tied to criminal offenses such as assault and driving under the influence, while 200 to 300 were linked to terrorism-related concerns, including support for extremist groups. Earlier in the year, student visa processing was briefly suspended, and new vetting procedures for international students were introduced.
Officials say these measures are designed to safeguard national security and prevent individuals who oppose American values from benefiting from U.S. residency, study, or work opportunities.
During Trump’s first dministratin The American Immigration Council’s report (May 2021) examines immigration enforcement under Trump and the early Biden administration. Trump implemented 363 policy changes aimed at subjecting all undocumented immigrants to enforcement, expanding expedited removals, boosting detention, targeting sanctuary jurisdictions, and strengthening ICE cooperation with local law enforcement. Despite aggressive policies, annual removals never exceeded 100,000 due to court backlogs, legal challenges, and resistance from states and cities.
The Biden administration, by contrast, let everyone in and let them stay, regardless of convictions or deportation orders. “We found literally zero visa revocations during the Biden administration,” a senior State Department official said, describing what he called a “blind eye attitude toward law enforcement.” Biden revoked Trump’s enforcement priorities, attempted a 100-day deportation moratorium (blocked in court), limited arrests at courthouses and COVID-19 vaccination sites, and signaled a reduced reliance on detention.
Congressional oversight reports reinforced this picture. A House Judiciary Committee and Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement interim staff report, released September 27, 2024, titled New Data Reveal Worsening Magnitude of the Biden Border Crisis and Lack of Interior Immigration Enforcement, drew on both public and nonpublic government data. It found that of nearly six million illegal alien encounters between January 20, 2021, and September 30, 2023, at least 3,095,577 individuals had no confirmed departure from the United States.
The same report revealed that, as of September 2023, more than 617,000 aliens on ICE’s non-detained docket had criminal convictions or pending charges, meaning over half a million criminal aliens were free in U.S. communities. By December 10, 2023, there were also 1,323,264 illegal aliens with final removal orders still living in the country.
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