Trump Administration Appeals Preliminary Injunction Blocking Entry Ban on Harvard Visa Holders

Updated June 27, 2025, at 5:01 p.m.

Trump administration lawyers on Friday appealed a judge’s temporary block on the president’s proclamation banning travelers from entering the United States on Harvard-sponsored F and J visas, sending the case to the First Circuit Court of Appeals.

The preliminary injunction, issued by U.S. District Judge Allison D. Burroughs on Monday, extended a halt on the proclamation as Harvard’s lawsuit against the Trump administration’s attacks on its international students proceeds in court.

In an opinion issued Monday night, Burroughs agreed that Harvard was likely to win its argument that the entry ban was retaliatory and unconstitutional.

The ban was one of many “misplaced efforts to control a reputable academic institution and squelch diverse viewpoints seemingly because they are, in some instances, opposed to this Administration’s own views,” she wrote.

The Trump administration has argued that the proclamation is legal under the president’s extensive authority to regulate U.S. borders in the interest of national security.

A Harvard spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Though the existing pause on Donald Trump’s proclamation remains in effect, a panel of judges on the First Circuit will decide whether to hear the federal government’s appeal.

The First Circuit spans district courts in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island, as well as for Puerto Rico. All but one of its judges were appointed by Democratic presidents, and the circuit is led by Chief Judge David J. Barron ’89.

Barron holds a visiting professorship at Harvard Law School and is a former president of The Harvard Crimson.

Harvard’s lawsuit names a list of federal agencies — including the State Department, the Justice Department, and the Department of Homeland Security — as defendants, though it does not name Trump himself.

The First Circuit will now decide whether to hear the federal government’s appeal. Should the appeal move forward, it will be heard by a panel of three judges on the First Circuit, who will accept briefs filed by Harvard and lawyers for the government and oversee oral argument before deciding whether to affirm or reverse Burroughs’ order.

The clash over Harvard’s international students began in mid-April, when Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem demanded that Harvard hand over a list of records on foreign students, including disciplinary information on criminal history and participation in protests or “obstruction of the school’s learning environment.”

Harvard turned over some of the requested information — but the DHS found it insufficient. On May 22, the DHS revoked Harvard’s certification to host international students and scholars under the Student and Exchange Visitor Program. The agency also asked for an expanded set of records, including audio and video of international students attending protests.

Harvard sued the next day, and Burroughs granted a temporary restraining order within hours, restoring its SEVP status. But Trump wasn’t done: On June 4, he issued the proclamation, which Burroughs blocked the next day.

Burroughs later granted preliminary injunctions against both moves.

A second attempt to revoke Harvard’s SEVP certification — this time under procedures that granted Harvard 30 days to turn over materials or appeal — is set to take effect Saturday. Burroughs declined to stop the clock on the withdrawal, but Harvard could ask her to intervene once it takes effect.

Harvard and the Trump administration have restarted conversations in the White House. Though Trump boasted that the parties were close to a settlement, it is unclear whether the terms of any agreement would affect the University’s international students — or when such an agreement might be reached.

—Staff writer Matan H. Josephy can be reached matan.josephy@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @matanjosephy.

—Staff writer Laurel M. Shugart can be reached at laurel.shugart@thecrimson.com. Follow them on X @laurelmshugart.