Donald Trump's government proposed Thursday reducing the length of stay in the United States for foreign students and journalists, as it tightens restrictions on legal immigration to the country.

Under the proposal, foreign nationals on student visas would not be allowed to stay in the United States for more than four years.

Foreign journalists, for their part, would be limited to stays of 240 days, although they could apply for renewals for the same periods. Only Chinese journalists would be limited to 90 days.

Until now, the United States granted visas for the duration of a student's program and up to five years for a journalist. These visas, known as "nonimmigrant" visas, are limited to 10 years.

This measure, if implemented, would affect journalists accredited to hundreds of foreign media outlets in the United States.

"For too long, previous administrations have allowed foreign students and other visa holders to remain in the United States almost indefinitely, posing security risks, costing taxpayers untold amounts of money, and disadvantaging American citizens," the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement Wednesday.

This proposal was published in the Federal Register, the official journal of the federal government, opening a short period for public comment before the change takes effect.

According to statistics from the Department of Commerce, international students contributed more than $50 billion to the U.S. economy in 2023.

The United States welcomed more than 1.1 million international students during the 2023-2024 academic year, more than any other country. Typically paying full tuition, their presence represents a crucial source of revenue for American universities.

- Decrease in "international competitiveness"-

"This proposed rule sends a message to talented people around the world that their contributions are not valued in the United States," said Miriam Feldblum, head of a group representing leaders of U.S. higher education institutions.

"This doesn't just harm international students—it also weakens the ability of American colleges and universities to attract top talent, and it diminishes our international competitiveness," said the president of the Alliance of Presidents on Higher Education and Immigration.

The announcement comes at the start of the academic year, with several institutions reporting a decline in international student enrollment.

The Trump administration has engaged in a series of battles against universities, targeting prominent institutions suspected of allowing anti-Semitic ideas to spread on their campuses, particularly in the context of protests against the war in the Gaza Strip.

In mid-August, the State Department announced that it had revoked 6,000 student visas since January. Some 55 million visa holders are now subject to increased screening.

Earlier this week, Donald Trump announced that he wanted to welcome 600,000 Chinese students, an announcement that was at odds with his foreign minister, Marco Rubio,'s stated intention to "firmly" revoke the visas of some Chinese students.

The benefits of immigration, including the right to live and work in the United States, "remain a privilege, not a right," the US Secretary of State likes to repeat.

Upon his return to the White House in January, Donald Trump made the fight against illegal immigration a top priority, referring to an "invasion" of the United States by "criminals from abroad."

At the end of his first term, Donald Trump proposed reducing the length of journalist visas, an idea abandoned by his successor, Democrat Joe Biden.