No Student Visas for Sanctuary Cities Act of 2025

This bill would block student visas for people who want to study at schools located in “sanctuary” areas. Each year, the Department of Homeland Security would list which states or local governments count as sanctuary jurisdictions. Students could not get F or M visas to attend schools in those places, unless the area later comes off the list and DHS reports that change to Congress.

Key points:

• Who is affected: International students seeking F or M visas, and schools in areas labeled as sanctuary jurisdictions by DHS each fiscal year.
• What changes: No F visas for academic programs (including colleges, K–12, conservatories, and language training) and no M visas for vocational or other nonacademic programs at schools in sanctuary jurisdictions.
• How “sanctuary” is defined: Places with laws or policies that obstruct immigration enforcement and shield criminals from ICE, such as refusing ICE detainers, adding unreasonable conditions to detainers, denying ICE access to interview incarcerated noncitizens, or impeding information sharing with federal officers.
• When: The list is set each fiscal year; if an area is later found not to be a sanctuary jurisdiction and DHS reports that to Congress, the visa block does not apply for that year.