A US judge has temporarily blocked a rule suspending new international student visas at Harvard, shortly after the university filed an amended lawsuit challenging the ban. The lawsuit, filed on June 5, 2025, argues that President Trump’s proclamation targeting Harvard students with F, M, and J visas is a pretext for a “governmental vendetta” and infringes on the First Amendment by undermining academic freedom.

Harvard claims the ban unfairly singles out its international students, who make up 27% of its student body and are vital to the university’s mission. The proclamation is seen as an attempt to bypass an earlier court order protecting Harvard’s certification under the Student and Exchange Visitor Program.

Harvard seeks to expand the restraining order to block the new proclamation while the lawsuit proceeds. University President Alan Garber called the administration’s actions “illegal” and “retaliatory” and assured the community that the university is committed to supporting its international students.