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Harvard University has lost its ability to enroll international students for the 2025–2026 academic year. This happened because the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) took away Harvard’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification. This certification allows schools to admit foreign students on F-1 or J-1 visas. Without this permission, Harvard cannot admit new international students. Also, international students already studying at Harvard must transfer to another school to keep their visa status.
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem ordered this action in a letter sent to Harvard on May 22. The letter says that Harvard must follow all DHS rules, including those about reporting information about foreign students. Secretary Noem wrote, “All universities must comply with Department of Homeland Security requirements, including reporting requirements under the Student and Exchange Visitor Program regulations, to maintain this privilege.”
Noem accused Harvard of refusing to give the DHS important information and creating an “unsafe campus environment that is hostile to Jewish students, promotes pro-Hamas sympathies, and employs racist 'diversity, equity, and inclusion' policies.” Because of these reasons, Harvard lost its privilege to enroll international students. The letter also said, “The revocation of your Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification means that Harvard is prohibited from having any aliens in F- or J-nonimmigrant status for the 2025-2026 academic school year. This decertification also means that existing aliens in F- or J-nonimmigrant status must transfer to another university in order to maintain their nonimmigrant status.”
Secretary Noem also said that Harvard University might get its SEVP certification back if it follows certain rules and sends the required information within 72 hours. Harvard must meet six specific conditions. These include giving all records about “illegal activity” by foreign students on or off campus in the last five years. Harvard must also provide all records of “dangerous or violent activity” and “threats made by nonimmigrant students” toward others.
Other required documents include any reports of students depriving others of their rights, all disciplinary records of foreign students in the last five years, and any audio or video of protests by foreign students on campus during the past five years.
Noem warned Harvard about the importance of telling the truth. She said, “Please be advised that providing materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent information may subject you to criminal prosecution under 18 U.S.C. § 1001. Other criminal and civil sanctions may also apply.”
This situation is serious because it affects many foreign students at Harvard who must now find other schools to continue their studies if the university cannot regain its certification. Harvard’s future with international students depends on how it responds to these DHS demands.