Picture this: you have held your tourist visa for years. Every December you pack your suitcase, buy your ticket, and travel to see your family. This year you do exactly the same… but at the airline counter they tell you that you cannot board: your visa was revoked. Nobody warned you. Nobody wrote to you. It simply ceased to exist.
That has already happened to more than 300,000 people, according to an announcement today by the State Department.
The announcement: more than 300,000 visas canceled
On October 20, 2026, the State Department reported that since Donald Trump took office in January 2025, more than 300,000 visas have been revoked. That is about 50,000 more than the 250,000 the department itself had reported barely three weeks earlier, at the end of September.
Spokesman Tommy Pigott put it bluntly: no administration in United States history had canceled visas at this pace or in this volume. “Zero tolerance for foreigners here on visas who break the law, commit fraud, or undermine our national security,” he said. “We are taking, and will continue to take, action to keep our borders, and our nation, secure.”
The causes: crimes, fraud, and “birth tourism”
According to the department, the revocations were the consequence of three kinds of conduct: criminal activity, threats to public safety, and immigration violations such as fraud or false information in applications.
The breakdown of visas canceled in 2025 shows where the scrutiny is falling:
- 25%: assaults or related crimes.
- 22%: driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs (DUI).
- 7%: theft.
- 7%: drug use or distribution.
In addition, at least 4,000 visas were canceled over “birth tourism”: cases of foreign nationals who traveled to the United States for the purpose of giving birth so the child would automatically obtain U.S. citizenship.
The detail that changes everything: it can be taken away even if you already live here
Here is the most worrying part. The State Department applies what it calls “continuous vetting”: your case is no longer reviewed just once at the consulate. Instead, visa holders are permanently screened against criminal, immigration, and intelligence databases. If an alert comes up, your visa can be canceled years after it was issued, even if you already live in the United States.
In 2025 the Bureau of Consular Affairs reviewed only 23,000 cases. In 2026 the pace surged, resulting in the 300,000 cancellations announced today. As Pigott said earlier this month: “Every visa decision is a national security decision” and “a U.S. visa is a privilege, not a right.”
What they did not say: which countries they are from
The department did not disclose the nationalities of the people affected, nor did it publish a full breakdown by visa type of the 300,000 cancellations. The only confirmed facts are the general causes and the 2025 breakdown cited above.
A separate plan: up to 200,000 B1/B2 visas in the crosshairs
Separately, the AP reported today that the administration is preparing another measure: revoking the tourist and business visas (B1/B2) of up to 200,000 foreign nationals who entered as visitors and later applied for asylum to stay in the country. According to State Department documents obtained by the AP, the measure would be coordinated with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and announced in the coming weeks. It is a separate plan from the 300,000 visas already canceled.
What to do today, in order
1. Avoid any arrest. The two most common causes of revocation in 2025 were assaults and driving under the influence. A DUI or a fight can cost you your visa, even if you have held it for years.
2. Never lie on any application. Fraud and false information are direct grounds for cancellation, both on the application and at the consular interview.
3. Check your visa status before traveling. With continuous vetting, a visa that was valid last year may not be valid today. Verify before buying your ticket.
4. If it is revoked, do not try to travel. Consult an immigration attorney first: attempting to enter on a canceled visa can bring worse consequences.
5. Keep your documents current. An up-to-date passport and current information prevent problems during screening.
If you are looking for a legal path to immigrate, also read our guide to the DV-2027 visa lottery, whose registration reopens no later than November 1. And follow our News section for updated immigration coverage.
Official sources
- U.S. Department of State — statements by spokesman Tommy Pigott and a department official, reported by the New York Post on October 20, 2026: Over 300K visas revoked so far in Trump’s second term, State Department announces.
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