The United States saw student visa denials reach a decade-high in the last fiscal year (October 2023 to September 2024), with 41% of F-1 visa applications from all countries rejected, nearly doubling the rejection rate from the 2014 fiscal year, according to an analysis by The Indian Express of U.S. State Department data.
During the 2023-24 fiscal year, the U.S. received approximately 679,000 applications for F-1 visas, of which 279,000 (41%) were denied. This marked an increase from the 2022-23 fiscal year, when 253,000 applications (36%) out of 699,000 were turned down.
Although the U.S. State Department did not disclose country-specific rejection rates for F-1 visas, The Indian Express previously reported on December 9, 2023, that the number of student visas issued to Indians in the first nine months of 2024 had dropped by 38% compared to the same period in 2023.
Over the past decade, the total number of student visa applications fluctuated, reaching a peak of 856,000 in 2014-15 before declining in subsequent years. The lowest number was recorded in 2019-2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, with just 162,000 applications. Post-pandemic, applications steadily increased but saw a slight decline of 3% in 2023-24 compared to the previous year, from 699,000 to 679,000. The 279,000 denials in 2023-24 represented the highest percentage of rejections in at least a decade. The total number of F-1 visas issued in the last fiscal year was 401,000, down from 445,000 in 2022-23.
The F-1 visa is a non-immigrant visa category for students attending academic institutions in the U.S., while the M-1 visa is for vocational and non-academic programs. The Indian Express analysis focused on F-1 visas, which account for over 90% of U.S. student visas issued annually.
When asked about the reasons behind the increase in F-1 visa rejections, a Department of State spokesperson told The Indian Express, “All visa adjudications are adjudicated on a case-by-case basis, in accordance with the provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) and applicable federal regulations.”
The State Department did not provide country-specific rejection data for F-1 visas, stating that it does not “publish data to the granularity requested.” Additionally, the department cited a “change in methodology” for calculating visa data from FY2019 onwards and directed queries to the annual ‘Report of the Visa Office’ for finalized fiscal year statistics.
“Our previousmethodology was based on a count of workload actions, which were not linked by application. The new methodology more accurately reflects final outcomes from the visa application process during a specified reporting period. The new methodology follows visa applications, including updates to their status (i.e., issued or refused), which could change as the fiscal year progresses, or result in slight changes in data for earlier years. Therefore, beginning with FY 2020, individual monthly issuance reports should not be aggregated, as this will not provide an accurate issuance total for the fiscal year to date,” the spokesperson explained.
While country-specific breakdowns of F-1 visa rejections remain unavailable, The Indian Express reported last December that 64,008 student visas were issued to Indians between January and September 2024, down from 103,000 during the same period in 2023. The U.S. State Department’s website has since updated its monthly reports from March to September, revising the total issued for the nine-month period to 63,973.
For comparison, 65,235 student visas were issued to Indians during the same period in 2021, and 93,181 were granted in 2022.
Indian students represent a significant share of the international student population in the U.S. According to the Open Doors 2024 report, Indian students outnumbered their Chinese counterparts in 2023-24, becoming the largest international student group in the U.S. with a 29.4% share. A record 331,000 Indian students were studying in the U.S. during the 2023-24 academic year, the highest number on record.
The rising F-1 visa rejection rate comes amid broader policy shifts in other countries aiming to curb international student numbers.
In 2024, Canada announced a cap on study permits, reducing approvals by 35% compared to 2023. The Canadian government attributed this decision to concerns about the strain international students place on housing, healthcare, and other public services. Canada has also planned an additional 10% cut in study permits for 2025.
Similarly, the United Kingdom, where Indian students are the second-largest international student group, has implemented measures to limit the influx of foreign students. New restrictions prevent foreign students from bringing dependents to the country. As a result, international student enrollment in British universities has dropped by up to 40%.