UPRISERS Act Mandates Visa Revocation, Deportation for International Students Convicted of Rioting or Assaulting Police

The UProot Rioting International Students Engaged in Radical Subversion Act, or the UPRISERS Act, is short, sharp, and focused on one goal: dramatically increasing the immigration penalties for international students and exchange visitors who get convicted of specific crimes while in the U.S.

The Immediate Consequence: Visa Pulled

If you are an international student here on an F (academic), J (exchange visitor), or M (vocational) visa, this bill creates a mandatory trigger for losing your status. Section 2 dictates that if you are convicted of two specific types of crimes, the Secretary of State must cancel your visa. There’s no discretion here; it’s automatic upon conviction. The two conviction triggers are: assaulting a police officer, or any offense connected to rioting.

What Counts as a 'Riot Offense'?

The definition of a 'riot offense' in this bill is broad, covering much more than just throwing rocks. It includes inciting a riot, organizing, promoting, encouraging, or just participating in one. Crucially, it also includes “helping anyone else who is inciting or participating in a riot or committing violence during one.” This means if you’re an international student and you’re convicted of posting something on social media that authorities later argue was ‘encouraging’ a riot, you could be facing immediate visa revocation. This wide net could potentially capture people involved in peaceful protest that authorities later classify as riot-related, raising the stakes considerably for students involved in any kind of large-scale demonstration.

From Visa Loss to Deportation

Section 3 takes things a step further. Not only does your visa get canceled, but these convictions are now explicitly added to the list of grounds that make an F, J, or M visa holder deportable. For the average person, a conviction for a misdemeanor might mean a fine or jail time. For an international student under the UPRISERS Act, that same conviction—especially if it falls under the broad 'riot offense' category—now means mandatory deportation proceedings. This removes any wiggle room for immigration judges to consider the context or severity of the underlying crime, making the consequence disproportionate to the offense for this specific group of visa holders.

The Real-World Impact on Students and Schools

This bill introduces a zero-tolerance policy that targets the approximately 1.1 million international students currently studying in the U.S. For example, imagine a student on a J-1 visa attending a university who participates in a large, heated protest. If local law enforcement charges them with a low-level offense like 'participating in a riot' and they are convicted—even if the conviction carries no jail time—they immediately lose their student status and face removal from the country. This creates a massive chilling effect on international students’ willingness to engage in any public demonstration, even those that might be considered lawful political speech for U.S. citizens or permanent residents. Universities that rely heavily on international tuition revenue will also feel the pressure, as students from abroad may choose countries with less severe immigration penalties for civil unrest.