Harvard University is challenging the Trump administration’s decision to bar the Ivy League school from enrolling foreign students, calling it unconstitutional retaliation for defying the White House’s political demands. It is the school’s second suit against the Trump administration.

In a lawsuit filed Friday in federal court in Boston, Harvard said the government’s action violates the First Amendment and will have an “immediate and devastating effect for Harvard and more than 7,000 visa holders.”

“With the stroke of a pen, the government has sought to erase a quarter of Harvard’s student body, international students who contribute significantly to the University and its mission,” Harvard said in its suit.

Harvard enrolls almost 6,800 foreign students at its campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Most are graduate students and they come from more than 100 countries.

The school said it plans to file for a temporary restraining order to block the Department of Homeland Security from carrying out the move, which it announced on Thursday. It accused Harvard of creating an unsafe campus environment by allowing “anti-American, pro-terrorist agitators” to assault Jewish students on campus. It also accused Harvard of coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party, contending the school had hosted and trained members of a Chinese paramilitary group as recently as 2024.

Homeland Security Sec. Kristi Noem said the action against Harvard will “serve as a warning” to other universities.

Harvard President Alan Garber earlier this month said the university has made changes to its governance over the past year and a half, including a broad strategy to combat antisemitism. He said Harvard would not budge on “its core, legally-protected principles” over fears of retaliation. Harvard has said it will respond at a later time to allegations first raised by House Republicans about coordination with the Chinese Communist Party.

The threat to Harvard’s international enrollment stems from an April 16 request from Noem, who demanded that Harvard provide information about foreign students that might implicate them in violence or protests that could lead to their deportation.

Noem said Harvard can regain its ability to host foreign students if it produces a trove of records on foreign students within 72 hours. Her updated request demands all records, including audio or video footage, of foreign students participating in protests or dangerous activity on campus.

An earlier suit from the university challenged more than $2 billion in federal cuts imposed by the Republican administration. That suit came after weeks of escalation between the Trump administration and Harvard, which had rejected the administration’s demands to change many of the school’s policies and leadership, including auditing the student body and faculty for “viewpoint diversity.” After Harvard announced its decision, the Trump administration moved to freeze $2.2 billion in grants for Harvard, while Mr. Trump had suggested the IRS strip Harvard of its 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status.

The lawsuit alleged the Trump administration violated Harvard’s constitutional rights by halting federal funding and claimed that the withholding of funds is “part of its pressure campaign to force Harvard to submit to the Government’s control over its academic programs.” 

China’s government said Friday that the Trump administration’s move to ban foreign students from Harvard would harm the United States’ international standing. Chinese students make up a large part of Harvard’s international student population, with 1,203 coming from China in 2024.

Some of Harvard’s sports teams would be virtually wiped out by the Trump administration’s decision. Large portions of the men’s rowing and squash and women’s soccer and golf rosters list international hometowns on the school’s website. Sportico reported last month that 21% of the players on Harvard athletic rosters for the 2024-25 seasons had international hometowns. 

Aimee Picchi

contributed to this report.