US State Department data obtained by Shorelight through a public records request, and reported by ICEF Monitor and Inside Higher Ed, shows the global F-1 student visa refusal rate reached 35% in 2025 — the highest in a decade, up from 31% in 2024 and 23% in 2015.
Correction to an earlier figure
An earlier version of this article cited a 41% global refusal rate. That figure is the Asia regional rate, not the global one. The global rate for 2025 is 35%. We have corrected this page.
Regional breakdown (2025)
- Europe: ~9% refused — more than 9 in 10 European applicants approved
- Asia: ~41%
- Africa: ~64%
Country-specific refusal rates (2025)
- India: 61% (up from 53% in 2024)
- Nepal: 81% (up from 59% in 2024)
- Ghana: 81% (up from 72% in 2024)
- Bangladesh: 73%
- Pakistan: 71%
- Sierra Leone, Somalia, Benin, Burkina Faso: at least 80% each
Refusals are, in Shorelight's phrase, structurally concentrated by region: an applicant's country of origin is a stronger predictor of outcome than most other factors. Asked to comment, the State Department said all visa applications are reviewed case by case under US law.
Volumes are falling too
Separately, State Department data shows the US issued 23% fewer new F-1, M-1 and J-1 study visas in 2025 than in 2024. Indian graduate enrolments fell 9.5% in 2024/25 after growing 18.5% the year before.
Costs have risen
Alongside the US$185 DS-160 application fee and the US$350 SEVIS fee, consular posts have begun collecting the new US$250 Visa Integrity Fee created by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Unlike the other two, it is charged at the point the visa is issued rather than when you apply, so refused applicants do not pay it.
What applicants should know
Most refusals are issued under section 214(b): the consular officer concluded the applicant did not adequately demonstrate non-immigrant intent. The strongest mitigation remains clear evidence of ties to your home country — post-graduation employment prospects, family ties, property, or a scholarship that requires return — together with financial evidence that shows stable funds rather than a single recent deposit.
Sources
- ICEF Monitor — Visa rejections climb in the US for international students from key markets including India (15 April 2026)
- Shorelight — Beyond the Interview: A Decade of Student Visa Denials and What Comes Next
- Inside Higher Ed — F-1 Student Visa Refusals Surged in 2025
- ICEF Monitor — US Department of State issued 23% fewer study visas in 2025
- Boston University ISSO — Visa Integrity Fee
Update — 14 September 2026: fixed-admission rule blocked
Separately from the refusal data, a DHS final rule published on 17 July 2026 would have replaced “duration of status” for F-1 students with a fixed period of admission of up to four years from 15 September 2026, and cut the post-completion grace period from 60 days to 30. On 14 September 2026 a federal court granted nationwide preliminary relief and blocked the rule, so duration of status and the 60-day grace period remain in force for now. See US “duration of status” rule blocked by federal court for the detail.