Weeks after the federal government revoked their visas, some North Texas international students have had their status reinstated.
University of North Texas officials reported Tuesday morning that 28 international students who had seen their student visas revoked by the Trump administration now have their credentials reinstated.
UNT officials said earlier this month that 30 international students had lost their visas.
"UNT continues to monitor the immigration status of its international students" said Devynn Case, director of UNT media relations. "As of Monday morning, April 28, a total of 28 enrolled students have had their SEVIS records returned to active status, which includes reported numbers from last Friday."
SEVIS records refer to the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, a database managed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, that other agencies use to track visa status.
Last Friday, Texas Woman's University officials reported that four of six international students who saw their visas revoked had their credentials reinstated. North Central Texas College officials have responded to a request regarding the status of two NCTC international students whose visas were revoked.
Meanwhile, UT Arlington spokesman Joe Carpenter told KERA all 27 currently enrolled international students who were impacted by the terminations have had their status reactivated.
"This remains a very fluid situation, and the UTA Office of International Education continues to work directly with all affected students to keep them updated on their individual statuses and to assist in supporting their individual needs," he said in an email.
Texas Wesleyan University said three of four students have had their visas reinstated.
Administrators of universities and colleges with international students enrolled were whipsawed last Friday when a U.S. Justice Department lawyer said that immigration officials had begun work on a new system for reviewing and terminating student visas. The attorney for international students said that until the process was complete, the U.S. State Department and the Department of Homeland Security would not make additional changes or further revocations.
The decision effectively reversed the administration's earlier decision to revoke thousands of student visas. The decision was part of the president's mass deportation effort, which first targeted people in the U.S. without legal documents, but quickly included immigrants in the country legally. The administration first targeted university students enrolled on student visas who had protested the war in Gaza and favored Palestinian freedom, or those who had been critical of Israel's response to Hamas' deadly attack in 2023. More recently, the president indicated that he planned to deport U.S. citizens who commit crimes.
Earlier this month, UNT officials said in a regularly scheduled faculty senate meeting that enrollment among international graduate students had declined this school year, and that officials aren't certain that what had been a growing demographic would increase in 2025-26. Administrators consider uncertainty about the federal government's immigration policies as a factor.
KERA education reporter Bill Zeeble contributed to this story.