ent confirmed that it was working with the Department of Homeland Security to identify people who entered the country on temporary non-immigrant visas and subsequently sought asylum.

“We are coordinating with DHS to identify and revoke the nonimmigrant visas of foreigners who have come to the United States claiming to be short-term visitors, but then file for asylum to stay here permanently,” State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said.

The department has not publicly confirmed how many people will ultimately be affected. The Associated Press, citing State Department documents and two US officials, reported that as many as 200,000 visas could be revoked.

If carried out on that scale, AP reported, it would be the largest single mass revocation of US visas on record and would probably face legal challenges.

The measure targets B1 business and B2 tourist visas issued between 2016 and 2026 to people who later applied for asylum or are currently seeking it. The State Department is expected to carry out the revocations on a rolling basis rather than cancelling all affected visas at once.

Pigott said the final number would remain “dynamic” because the process was continuing.

Revocation of a B1 or B2 visa would not necessarily mean immediate deportation. Officials told AP that most people whose asylum cases remain pending would be reclassified under their asylum status but would no longer retain their status as business or tourist visitors.

Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau defended the policy on Monday, accusing some foreigners of using temporary visas as a route to remain permanently in the country.

“People in the US and all over the world are fed up with bogus asylum claims,” Landau wrote on X, according to AP. “Asylum isn’t supposed to be a loophole to circumvent immigration law.”

The administration has not presented evidence that all, or most, of the people covered by the planned revocations filed fraudulent asylum claims. US asylum law allows foreign nationals to seek protection if they meet the relevant legal requirements, while individual applications can be approved or rejected through the immigration system.

The planned measure is the latest expansion of President Donald Trump's immigration restrictions since he returned to the White House for a second term.

The State Department said earlier in August that more than 175,000 visas had already been revoked under the Trump administration. The government has also tightened vetting of visa applicants, expanded scrutiny of social media activity and imposed or proposed additional costs and restrictions across parts of the legal immigration system.

Trump says the measures are intended to strengthen domestic and national security. Civil rights and immigration organisations have challenged several administration policies, arguing that some violate due process and free-speech protections or discriminate against foreign nationals.

Those legal disputes have already produced setbacks for the administration. On 21 August, US District Judge Jeannette Vargas struck down a separate State Department policy suspending immigrant visa processing for people from 75 countries, ruling that the blanket restriction exceeded the department's authority under federal immigration law.

That ruling concerned immigrant visas and is separate from the proposed B1 and B2 revocations.

The administration has also imposed extensive country-based entry restrictions. State Department guidance says visa issuance is fully suspended, subject to limited exceptions, for nationals of 19 countries and for people applying with travel documents issued or endorsed by the Palestinian Authority. Another 19 countries face partial restrictions covering categories including B1/B2 visitor visas.

The new asylum-related revocations have not yet been finalised. According to AP, the State Department is expected to announce the action in the coming weeks unless the plan is revised or challenged.