US immigration policy impacting Asian students in NJ

Image credit: Partial screenshot of Preliminary Injunction Order against termination of six Rutgers' students Student Exchange and Visitor Information System records being terminated. DOE #1 et al v. NOEM et al, No. 2:2025cv02998 - Document 39 (D.N.J. 2025)
https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/new-jersey/njdce/2:2025cv02998/566621/39/

Newark, NJ - When six Asian international students at Rutgers University found their student statuses abruptly terminated in April 2025, they were left in legal limbo. Represented by the ACLU of New Jersey, the Rutgers Immigrant Community Assistance Project, and attorneys from the Gibbons Fellowship in Public Interest and Constitutional Law, the students challenged the terminations in federal court—and won a preliminary injunction on May 8, 2025, in the United States District Court of New Jersey.

The judge's ruling required ICE to restore their records retroactively and blocked the agency from re-terminating them without at least 20 days notice. But even with this temporary relief, the students' records still contain notations of the unlawful terminations, which, according to their attorneys, will continue to disadvantage them and pose serious legal consequences if not removed.

"These students, who had done nothing wrong, were targeted based on a search of a large, error-prone database, rather than any individualized assessment," said Farrin Anello, Senior Staff Attorney with the ACLU of New Jersey.

"ICE did so with no advance notice or opportunity to be heard," she added, calling the process "arbitrary and unfair" and violating basic principles of due process.

Among the 1,126,690 international students in the U.S. in 2024, students from India and China made up 54% of that number—with other Asian countries like South Korea, Taiwan, Bangladesh, and Nepal following in the top ten places of origin for U.S. international students.

"Virtually all the students whose status was terminated at Rutgers during March and April, to our knowledge, were Chinese or Indian citizens," said Anello.

Asian immigrants, especially those on student or temporary work visas, are highly concentrated in states like California, Texas, New York, and, of course, New Jersey. Yet despite their numbers and economic contributions, international students from Asia face disproportionate legal, emotional, and academic strain.

The Rutgers students' legal team argued that ICE's abrupt termination of SEVIS (Student and Exchange Visitor Information System) records "violates the law and the Constitution," according to the May 8, 2025 ACLU statement on the case.  

When asked to justify their actions, ICE provided "shifting rationale," according to Molly Linhorst, ACLU-NJ Staff Attorney. 

This further illustrates what Anello describes as "arbitrary and unconstitutional actions [that] threatened to derail their academic careers and put them at risk of arrest and deportation."

Anello emphasized that the ACLU of New Jersey took on the case "because ICE's attack on international students has violated basic principles of due process" and because the students had "sacrificed and worked very hard to come to the United States to study." She added, "They relied on the government's promise that if they worked hard and followed the rules, they could earn their degrees and complete their training here."

ICE reactivated the SEVIS records of the Rutgers students, and the court's preliminary injunction protects the students from immediate re-termination. Still, the damage lingers.

"We are seeking to undo the harm to our client's records," Anello said, "and to ensure advance notice and a fair process should ICE move to terminate student status in the future."

For students on temporary visas, even a clerical error can spark fear of deportation and lead to the loss of internships and housing. Many are far from home, carrying high expectations from their families and navigating unfamiliar systems, yet they often lack access to institutional services that recognize their vulnerabilities.

That uncertainty starts early. Rishi, a rising senior in New Jersey whose family is on a temporary visa, is already feeling the pressure.

"It's for sure been a challenging experience learning about how financial aid is going to apply for me—or even if I'll receive any aid—as I go through the college application process," he said.

"I've attended a few seminars and talked with my college counselor... and for the most part, I've learned that needing aid can significantly reduce my chances of getting accepted to many need-aware colleges while my status as an international applicant introduces much more competition for a spot among top schools."

Compounding the issue is the lack of financial aid for these students. According to the U.S. Department of Education, noncitizens are only eligible for federal student aid if they fall into a narrow set of categories (e.g., refugees, permanent residents, or asylum seekers). F-1 visa holders—like those in the Rutgers case—do not qualify.

Reduced federal support leaves many immigrant students and their families to fund their education out of pocket. In turn, SEVIS record terminations, which prevent these students from working on-campus jobs or internships, hurt these students' already difficult financial situations.

Rishi also expressed concern about future opportunities, primarily as he pursues a pre-med track.

"I already have had instances where I can't apply to certain summer programs because of my status, and there are a lot of BS/MD programs that I'm interested in that require a green card to apply," he said.

"So I am slightly worried that there may be opportunities in the future that I am barred from… but I'm determined to work diligently to succeed nonetheless."

Considering such difficult and unfair conditions, it is no surprise that 70% of Indian immigrants believe the U.S. immigration system needs complete or significant change—a view held by 59% of Asian immigrants overall. Among those who immigrated for educational or economic opportunity, about six in ten say the system needs significant reform. 

As their battle for a fair education continues, students like those represented by ACLU and Rishi show us that behind these large institutional injustices, there are people— students chasing a future that might be stolen away by nothing more than a clerical error.