The United States Department of State has revoked more than 175,000 visas from foreign nationals under United States President Donald Trump.
According to a news release from the US Department of State dated August 10, 2026, US visas were revoked from persons who violated the terms of their visas, committed crimes, called for violence against US citizens, defrauded Americans, abused the immigration system, or endangered national security.
Some Trinidad and Tobago nationals have also had their US visas revoked.
In June, Attorney General John Jeremie disclosed in the Parliament that the United States government has revoked the visas of certain members of the “1%” in Trinidad and Tobago.
He said a Guardian Media Ltd journalist had asked him whether several US visas belonging to people associated with the group had been revoked. According to Jeremie, he initially ignored the question.
“But I was subsequently visited in my office by a number of persons who said that their US visas had been revoked. We all know that our American friends have sophisticated means of intelligence gathering,” he said.
The Attorney General stressed the Government had no involvement in decisions regarding US visas.
The US Department of State advised that the majority of the visas were revoked due to law enforcement encounters for a range of criminal activity, with assault, driving under the influence, theft, and drug crimes being the leading causes.
A significant number of visas were revoked for reckless driving, sexual assault, child abuse, fraud and embezzlement, and other crimes.
The US Department of State indicated the revocations come as a result of the State Department’s continuous vetting operations, which ensure visa recipients abide by the terms of their visa and do not endanger Americans.
The release stated that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has determined that numerous foreign nationals are deportable on foreign policy grounds, including a Cuban national connected to a Cuban communist regime influence operation, Iranian nationals with connections to the Iranian regime, a Laotian child sex offender pardoned by Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, and a Kuwaiti national who wished for violence against the President of the United States and called Americans his “enemy”.
It added that the US State Department will continue to identify, investigate and revoke the visas of foreign nationals who threaten the safety of the American people.
“A US visa is a privilege, not a right. The Department remains committed to using every tool available to protect our communities from those who abuse it,” the release stated.
The US Department of State also listed Visa Revocations and Deportability Determinations, noting it has revoked visas from criminals who posed a danger to American citizens, endorsed violence against Americans, arranged illegal birth tourism schemes, or engaged in fraud, including:
• A foreign national who was charged with felony rape and sexual battery, including of a victim who was mentally disabled;
• a foreign national charged with felony kidnapping, human trafficking, and sexual exploitation of a minor;
• a foreign national arrested for disorderly conduct, resisting arrest with violence, drunk driving, and domestic violence;
• a US embassy in North Africa revoked over 100 visas for “birth tourist” parents who came to the United States primarily to give birth so that their children would get US citizenship;
• a foreign national charged with sodomy of a child and aggravated sexual battery;
• a foreign national charged with over a dozen counts of possessing child sexual abuse material;
• a foreign national was arrested for driving with heroin and a blood alcohol level more than three times the legal limit;
• multiple foreign nationals who celebrated the assassination of Charlie Kirk, including one who stated “when fascists die, democrats don’t complain” and another who said he “died too late”;
• a foreign national who claimed to operate a legitimate business helping vulnerable patients access healthcare helped orchestrate a massive Medicaid scam billing for over $5 million of fake services;
• a foreign national built a company on lies faking revenue and fooling investors to swindle millions of dollars from clients. The foreign national used the false claims and forged letters to fraudulently secure a visa;
• a foreign national who came to the US to teach young students and was then arrested for sexually assaulting one.
Trinidad Express
