Trump officials give Harvard 30 days to rebut foreign student ban

The Trump administration has given Harvard University 30 days to respond with evidence showing why the administration should not make good on its threat to bar it from enrolling international students, according to a notice that was filed in federal court before a hearing Thursday.

A judge had already temporarily stopped the federal government from cutting off international students from Harvard, and the sides were taking part in a hearing Thursday morning in a Boston courtroom after Harvard asked for an extension.

The administration’s filing appears to be a legal manoeuvre to delay, if not change, the ultimate outcome in the case. Any halt to the admission of international students threatens to rock Harvard, where international students make up about a quarter of the student body.

The filing appeared to address a procedural claim that the administration had not followed the proper method of notification when it abruptly announced it would bar Harvard from a program that allows it to admit international students, said David Super, an administrative law expert at Georgetown University.

“An obvious violation like this procedural one is going to be a simple way for the court to rule against the government, and the government wanted to remove that,” he said.

But the 30-day delay does little to address the core questions in the case, on which the judge may ultimately have to rule.

The Trump administration has sought extensive documentation from Harvard, requesting, among other things, coursework for every international student and information on any student visa holder involved in misconduct or illegal activity.

Citing Harvard’s failure to fully comply, the administration moved last week to revoke its ability to host international students. It has also accused Harvard of fostering a culture of antisemitism, among other allegations.

It is now giving Harvard 30 calendar days to provide written documentation and other evidence “to rebut the alleged grounds for withdrawal.”

International students are core to Harvard’s efforts to attract global talent, and they make up an especially high share of the university’s graduate programs. At the Kennedy School of Government, more than half of the students are international. At the Chan School of Public Health, about 40% of students are international students.