Sponsors
The bill strengthens the State Department's ability to bar or revoke visas for individuals who commit or materially support violent antisemitic acts—improving public safety and disrupting violent networks—while expanding discretionary enforcement that risks chilling free expression, academic debate, due-process protections, and creating diplomatic friction.
Immigrants and nonimmigrant students who commit violent antisemitic acts or provide material support can be denied or have F/M visas revoked, reducing the risk of repeat attacks and disrupting networks that enable violence.
The State Department's adoption of the IHRA definition provides a government-recognized standard for identifying antisemitic conduct, clarifying criteria for visa enforcement decisions.
Explicit authority to deny/revoke visas for those who provide material support to antisemitic violence creates an enforcement tool to disrupt funding and organizational support for attacks.
Foreign nationals (including F- and M- visa applicants and students) could be denied visas or lose status based on speech or political expression if IHRA examples are interpreted broadly, chilling free expression and activism.
Reliance on a politically contested definition may chill legitimate protest and academic debate on Israel/Palestine on campuses, harming educational freedom and campus discourse.
The bill grants broad, discretionary authority to the Secretary of State to determine 'potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences,' creating unpredictable enforcement, limited procedural protections, and possible visa-processing delays.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Authorizes denial or revocation of F‑1 and M‑1 student visas for noncitizens who engage in defined antisemitic violence, harassment, vandalism, or knowingly support such acts that pose adverse foreign policy consequences.
Introduced April 10, 2025 by Nicole Malliotakis · Last progress April 10, 2025
Denies or allows revocation of F-1 and M-1 student visas for noncitizens who engage in specified antisemitic conduct or who knowingly provide material support for such conduct when that behavior is judged to pose potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States. It defines "antisemitism" by reference to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition adopted May 26, 2016 and spells out prohibited conduct as violent/vandalism/harassing acts targeting Jewish people, property, institutions, or knowingly supporting those acts.