More than 250,000 US visas have been revoked since President Donald Trump returned to office — a figure the State Department is calling a historic milestone in its immigration enforcement campaign. The disclosure that 250000 US visas revoked since January 2026 now ranks among the largest visa revocation efforts in modern American history came from State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott in a Fox News Digital interview published September 30, 2026, and was amplified on the department’s official social media accounts the same day.
“Under President Trump and Secretary Rubio, the State Department has now revoked more than 250,000 visas — a historic milestone that reflects our unwavering commitment to protecting the American people,” Pigott said, framing the revocations as the product of what officials call “continuous vetting” of visa holders. Officials say the 250000 US visas revoked total will keep climbing as continuous vetting expands.
250000 US visas revoked: how the milestone was announced
Pigott revealed the figure in an interview with Fox News Digital on September 30, saying the department had crossed the quarter-million mark through rolling reviews of visa holders’ conduct. Hours later, the State Department’s official social media accounts promoted the milestone, describing it as historic and crediting the Trump administration’s stricter enforcement posture. The announcement drew wide international coverage, including detailed reporting by Business Standard and the Economic Times on who is being targeted.
The revocations are not confined to a single visa category or nationality. The department said it is not providing a country-by-country breakdown, but emphasized that the campaign spans tourist, student, work and other visa classes — anyone found to have violated the terms of their stay or to pose a security risk can be swept into the process.
Why the State Department is revoking visas
According to the State Department, revocations follow “continuous vetting” — ongoing reviews of visa holders against criminal records, fraud indicators and national-security databases. Officials cite visa condition violations, criminal activity, fraud and abuse of the immigration system, calls for violence against the United States, and broader national-security concerns as grounds for pulling visas.
The pace has accelerated sharply. In August 2026, the administration announced it had revoked more than 175,000 visas, with officials at the time naming assault, DUI, theft and drug offenses as the leading causes. Crossing 250,000 barely a month later suggests the vetting machinery has been scaled up significantly — a trend consistent with the administration’s wider second-term agenda, which has also reshaped US trade policy and domestic benefit programs. If the current pace holds, the 250000 US visas revoked milestone will soon be eclipsed by an even larger figure.
Birth tourism behind 2,300 revocations
About 2,300 of the revocations were linked to birth tourism — travel to the United States primarily to give birth so the child acquires American citizenship. The administration has framed the practice as an abuse of the immigration system, and the figures suggest consular officers and vetting teams have been specifically directed to flag it. The birth-tourism crackdown fits the department’s stated focus on fraud, alongside criminal and security-related revocations. The 2,300 cases are a small but politically potent slice of the 250000 US visas revoked.
27 Latin American officials barred days earlier
Separately, on September 28, the State Department revoked the visas of 27 current and former Latin American officials — and their family members — from Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, citing corruption. While distinct from the 250,000-visa milestone, the move underscored how visa revocation has become a favored foreign-policy tool of the second Trump administration, used for both domestic enforcement and diplomatic pressure. The action was a separate track from the 250000 US visas revoked under continuous vetting.
What the milestone means going forward
Immigration lawyers say the sheer scale of the campaign — a quarter of a million revocations in under nine months — marks a break from past practice, when revocations were typically handled case by case and numbered in the tens of thousands per year. Supporters argue continuous vetting closes gaps that once let visa holders with criminal records remain in the country; critics warn the opaque process leaves visa holders with little recourse and could chill legitimate travel, study and business.
For now, the State Department shows no sign of slowing down. With 250000 US visas revoked in under nine months, the campaign is already the largest of its kind — and officials say the next milestone may arrive even faster. This article was fact-checked on October 2, 2026.
Why were the 250,000 US visas revoked?
The State Department says revocations followed "continuous vetting" for visa condition violations, criminal activity, fraud and abuse of the immigration system, calls for violence against the United States, and national-security concerns. When the total passed 175,000 in August 2026, officials said the leading causes included assault, DUI, theft and drug offenses.
What is birth tourism, and how is it linked to the revocations?
About 2,300 of the revoked visas were linked to birth tourism — travel to the United States primarily to give birth so the child gains US citizenship. The administration says it is targeting fraud and abuse of the immigration system, and birth tourism falls under that effort.
Which countries and visa categories are affected by the revocations?
The State Department said the revocations are not limited to one visa category or nationality and gave no country-by-country breakdown. Separately, on September 28, the department revoked the visas of 27 current and former Latin American officials — and their families — from Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru over corruption concerns.
What was the previous visa revocation milestone?
In August 2026 the administration announced more than 175,000 revocations, with officials naming assault, DUI, theft and drug offenses as the leading causes. The jump to 250,000+ reflects the accelerating pace of the State Department's "continuous vetting" program.
