Chandigarh, August 26, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The North American Punjabi Association (NAPA) has urged the US administration to ensure transparency, due process and individualised review as it considers revoking business and tourism visas held by foreign nationals who have applied for or are currently seeking asylum in the United States.
NAPA Executive Director Satnam Singh Chahal, while releasing copies of letters addressed to US Senators Alex Padilla and Adam B. Schiff, said the reported plan could affect up to 200,000 B1 and B2 visa holders. The State Department, however, has not confirmed a final figure and has said the revocations would be carried out on a rolling basis.
According to reports, the proposed action would target B1 and B2 visas issued between 2016 and 2026 to individuals who subsequently sought or are currently seeking asylum. If implemented at the reported scale, it could become the largest single mass visa revocation in US history.
Chahal said NAPA recognises the US government’s authority to enforce immigration and visa laws but stressed that enforcement should distinguish between deliberate visa fraud and cases where circumstances changed after a person entered the country.
“A person who obtained a visitor visa with a genuine intention to visit temporarily should not automatically be presumed to have committed fraud merely because that person later sought asylum,” Chahal said, calling for each case to be examined on its individual facts.
He also emphasised that visa revocation should not automatically be equated with immediate deportation. Reports indicate that the proposed action would not necessarily result in immediate removal, although affected individuals could lose their B1 or B2 status. The State Department has not yet detailed what would happen to pending asylum cases.
Chahal said the uncertainty was particularly concerning for immigrant and diaspora communities, including Punjabi and South Asian families with longstanding links to the US, India, Canada and other countries.
“The government must communicate clearly who is affected, what procedure will be followed, what notice individuals will receive and what legal remedies will be available,” he said.
He urged people potentially affected by the policy not to panic but to retain copies of their immigration records, carefully review notices from US authorities and seek qualified legal advice where necessary.
“The credibility of the American immigration system depends on both enforcement and fairness,” Chahal said.
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