The pandemic also affects international students

It is well known that most countries around the world closed their borders to mitigate the impact of the Coronavirus in their territories.

This measure was implemented by President Trump in the US, who decided to close the borders as well to protect the health of the local population and the economy.

Therefore, no one is allowed to leave or enter the country, only a few exceptions apply to be exempt from this emergency measure and many people are currently stranded in the US.

This is the case of thousands of international students currently residing in the US, who have been unable to return to their countries due to the health crisis caused by the Coronavirus.

The concern of international students during the pandemic

International students, who currently number over a million, typically obtain a temporary residence permit in the US.

If they wish to remain in the country, they have several options to renew their residence permits or change their legal status. (For more information about changes of legal status, please feel free to contact Motion Law Immigration, our attorneys can guide you through your process).

However, student permits are temporary and if the time allowed is exceeded, they may incur in “Unlawful Presence”.

“Unlawful Presence,” explained by the US Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS), refers to when a person resides in the country without a valid legal permit.

If a person accumulates “Unlawful presence” and then wants to apply for a legal residence permit, he/she could be inadmissible in the US for a considerable period of time and the requests might be denied.

Therefore, the current concern of thousands of foreign students stranded in the US is that due to delays in USCIS immigration processes, they will not have enough time to renew their residence permits and perhaps they could accumulate “unlawful presence”, which threatens their future in the country.

In addition to that, their graduations could also be at risk if they do not renew their legal residence permits on time.

A possible solution for international students

Several critics around the country are requesting to the current administration of the US to grant an extension for residence permits of foreign students living in the country during the health crisis.

The main reason for this petition is that Trump’s government has repeatedly stated that people with temporary residence permits must leave the country before their permits expire to avoid “unlawful presence”, this includes international students.

However, critics assure that international students are an essential piece during the current conjuncture as they boost the economy and are the future workers of the country who are going to help overcome the economic crisis caused by the Coronavirus.

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