KATHMANDU, July 15: The US immigration authorities have withdrawn a move to force international students to leave the country if their colleges and universities run online-only classes. The decision comes as a huge relief to thousands of international students worried about their visa status in the country.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have agreed to rescind a policy that would bar international students taking online-only courses from residing in the United States

 Allison D. Burroughs, a district Court Judge, announced at a hearing on Tuesday that ICE will revert to the guidance it issued in March that allows students taking online courses to reside in the United States on F-1 visas, and it will rescind any implementation of the policy, according to news reports published in US-based media. A case was filed jointly by Harvard and MIT last week, asking the courts to bar DHS and ICE from enforcing the policy. The universities drew support from hundreds of peer institutions, dozens of cities and states, and student organizations.

"Burroughs said the parties had agreed to a resolution less than five minutes into a hearing for the case Harvard and MIT filed last week asking the courts to bar DHS and ICE from enforcing the policy. The universities drew support from hundreds of peer institutions, dozens of cities and states, and student organizations," said a report published in The Harvard Crimson.

At a hearing last week, Harvard’s lawyers cited the case of an incoming Harvard sophomore who was stopped at the airport in Minsk, Belarus due to the new guidelines. Other students also filed declarations in the case attesting to the challenges the policy would have posed, the report further said.

This new rule had left Nepali as well as other international students attending academic classes in universities in the US and those  pursuing non-academic or vocational studies with a risk of being suddenly deported or forced to transfer to other colleges.

 The United States has remained one of the most preferred destinations for further higher education for Nepali students. There are currently over 14,000 Nepali students enrolled in various universities across the US.

 The 2019 Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange data released by the Institute of International Education and US Department of State Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs showed that Nepal ranked 12th in terms of the number of both undergraduate and graduate students studying in the US, with 13,229 students. More than 2,000 Nepali students enroll in educational institutions across the country every year. Nearly 1.1 million international students are enrolled in educational institutions across the U.S.

 
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