The United States issued about 250,000 fewer visas in the majority of 2025 than 2024, with India and China among the countries most affected as policy changes under President Donald Trump reshaped legal immigration flows.
From January to August 2025, the U.S. approved about 11% fewer permanent resident and temporary visas — roughly 250,000 less than in 2024, according to the latest data released by the U.S. State Department. The figures cover visas for students, workers and family members of U.S. citizens and legal residents, and exclude tourist visas, which also declined.
Across 61 countries that had at least 5,000 visa approvals in early 2024, only seven saw increases in 2025.
Several factors appear to have contributed to the drop, including a June travel ban covering 19 countries, a three-week pause on student and exchange visa interviews, expanded vetting such as social media checks, and reduced State Department staffing following federal workforce cuts.
The White House defended the approach. “President Trump was elected with a resounding mandate to put American citizens first, and every policy decision he’s made has reflected that priority,” spokesperson Abigail Jackson said.
International students were among the hardest hit, with student visas falling by more than 30% during the period. The decline follows remarks by Secretary of State Marco Rubio in May that the U.S. would “aggressively revoke” visas of students from China. The State Department later said it had canceled about 6,000 student visas over alleged crimes and overstays. Exchange visitor visas — often used by foreign medical residents — also fell by nearly 30,000.
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Family-based visas showed mixed trends. Temporary visas for spouses and fiancés declined, while green cards issued to immediate relatives of U.S. citizens — including spouses, parents and young children — rose by about 6%. These categories are not subject to annual caps. By contrast, capped family visa categories, such as those for adult children and siblings of U.S. citizens, dropped by more than 27%, or about 44,000.
The visa decline reflects a broader slowdown in immigration. According to the Brookings Institution, more immigrants left the United States than entered last year for the first time in at least five decades. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell said recently that reduced immigration has contributed to weaker job growth.
India and China saw some of the largest declines. Overall, visas issued to Indian and Chinese nationals fell by about 84,000 compared with the same period in 2024. Afghan and Cuban nationals also saw sharp declines following new travel restrictions, while visas dropped by more than 10,000 for citizens of the Philippines and Vietnam.