Interrogation and Expulsion: Why Does the U.S. Still Impose Severe Restrictions on Chinese Students?

Amid American concerns about China's theft of technology and intellectual property, Chinese students studying in the United States are still being subjected to interrogation and inspection since the rule of former President Donald Trump, in a policy that continued during the administration of current President Joe Biden.

Chinese media reported that some students were temporarily detained at the U.S. border and a number of them were expelled by law enforcement authorities, while other students were asked whether they had received sponsorship from the government-linked China Scholarship Council, and whether they had participated in any research related to national secrets.

Last January, the Chinese Embassy in the United States stated that some Chinese students were subjected to lengthy and groundless interrogations and examinations at Washington Dulles International Airport, indicating that it had lodged a strong protest with the U.S. side.

It considered that the American measures in Washington contradict the consensus reached during the last summit held between the U.S. and Chinese presidents regarding enhancing popular and cultural exchanges.

In 2020, former President Trump ordered an executive to keep out Chinese students who have attended schools with strong links to the Chinese military.

It is noteworthy that there are signs that the decades-long contract that sent an estimated 3 million Chinese students, who are a major source of tuition fees and talent for U.S. universities, to the U.S. may be heading down as geopolitical shifts redefine U.S.–China relations.

Deep Dispute

The Washington Post revealed that online discussion forums were filled with complaints from Chinese students whose visas were canceled without a clear explanation or who were subjected to intense questioning by border authorities, accompanied by the use of phrases such as: Make sure you have a lawyer's number ready. Choose clothes from Western brands. It does not bear any logos of the Chinese Communist Party.

Chinese students say they are being unfairly targeted by U.S. officials at the border, increasing doubt and frustration among Chinese students about whether coming to the U.S. is worth it.

On the other hand, there is concern among Chinese students that spending too much time in the United States may jeopardize their chances of finding work in China, especially in state-run or other government-linked companies.

Six Chinese students and study visitors who spoke to the Washington Post described being interrogated upon arrival in the United States about their research, their families, and any possible connection to the Chinese Communist Party.

"Two of them had their visas canceled, and they were immediately deported. All but one of them were in the middle of their studies and had previously had a valid entry permit," the newspaper added.

It pointed out that these tensions are deepening the dispute between China and the United States, at a time when they are trying to stabilize relations and reduce tensions.

This warning represents a potential obstacle in efforts to resume exchanges and enhance communication between the two largest economies in the world, following the California summit, which was held last November between U.S. President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, according to Bloomberg.

During that meeting, U.S. President Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi pledged to welcome more students to their countries.

The two sides also supported the expansion of educational, cultural, and trade missions, which Bloomberg considered an indication of an easing of tensions that had accumulated in previous years.

Interrogation and Harassment

Last February, Chinese Public Security Minister Wang Xiaohong urged U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to end alleged harassment of Chinese students entering the United States.

China's Xinhua News Agency reported that Beijing urged Washington to stop harassing and controlling Chinese students without a clear reason.

During a meeting with Mayorkas, Xiaohong urged the U.S. to ensure that Chinese citizens receive fair treatment upon entry with dignity.

Last January, the Chinese Embassy in the U.S. alerted Chinese students to be careful when traveling through Washington Dulles International Airport after it said that many of them had been questioned there by border agents or sent back to China, Bloomberg reported.

The embassy continued: "Upon their arrival, they are subjected to lengthy interrogations, all of their electronic devices are examined, and the freedom of some of them is restricted for more than ten hours, and they are prevented from contacting the outside world."

The embassy stressed that all students carry the necessary documents, and some of them return to the U.S. after vacation at home or after traveling to third countries, including after trips to attend conferences, and some of them are newly arrived students.

These measures often occur at Washington Dulles International Airport, according to the embassy, which warned Chinese students who plan to study in the United States to choose carefully whether they want to enter the country through this airport.

The Chinese foreign ministry also has protested that a number of Chinese students have been unfairly interrogated and sent home upon arrival at U.S. airports in recent months. 

Spokeswoman Mao Ning recently described the U.S. actions as selective, discriminatory, and politically motivated.

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said fewer than one-tenth of 1% of Chinese students have been detained or denied admission. 

Another State Department official said Chinese students selected for U.S.-funded exchange programs have been harassed by Chinese state agents.

The State Department issued 86,080 F-1 student visas to Chinese students in the budget year ending last September. Still, the number remains below the pre-pandemic level of 105,775 F-1 student visas.

Continuing U.S. Measures

For 4 years, Chinese students in the United States have been subjected to heavy surveillance due to measures imposed under Donald Trump against students, especially in the fields of science and technology, who are suspected of having military ties.

In May 2020, the Trump administration announced the suspension of entry of Chinese researchers and students to the United States, amid tensions in relations between Beijing and Washington on several levels, including trade, the coronavirus pandemic, human rights, and the Hong Kong issue.

The White House then justified its decision on the grounds that they were unofficially collecting sensitive information to serve the Chinese army.

However, these measures continued as they were under the administration of current President Joe Biden.

For decades, academic exchanges have been a way for people in the world's two largest economies to get to know each other and share a better understanding.

Chinese students, whose enrollment in American schools nearly tripled between 2009 and 2019, were a huge source of income for U.S. universities, as well as talent in science, engineering, and technology-related fields.

China sent nearly 290,000 students to the United States in the previous academic year, down more than 20% from its peak in the 2019–2020 academic year, according to the Open Doors report on international educational exchange.

Meanwhile, the number of U.S. students in China is less than a thousand, down from more than 10,000 before the coronavirus pandemic, but this did not prevent Chinese leaders from setting an ambitious goal of having 50,000 U.S. students in China within 5 years.

Part of this decline is due to Beijing's crackdown on groups that traditionally support exchanges, including a 2016 law that placed foreign NGOs operating in China under the authority of Beijing's powerful state intelligence (Ministry of State Security).

A sharp decline in the number of these students will cause financial problems for U.S. colleges and universities.

Chinese students spent about $15 billion in tuition payments in the 2018–2019 academic year, while their reduced access may result in higher tuition for U.S. students.

"If this trend continues for 5 or 10 years, you will lose a generation of China scholars," said Da Wei, director of the Center for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University and a visiting scholar at Stanford University, who was recently stopped for questioning on his way to the United States.

In contrast, some U.S. lawmakers defend the tough stance on Chinese students, accusing the Chinese Communist Party of weaponizing them as a conduit to take U.S. innovation back to China.

"This needs to stop. We are quite literally funding our own potential destruction," Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), chairman of a House panel tasked with countering Beijing, said in a January op-ed. 

He called on U.S. universities to stop allowing Chinese students with links to People's Liberation Army-affiliated universities to conduct research in the United States — a practice he said has empowered Beijing's military modernization.