The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has introduced a new policy that restricts visa access for transgender women seeking to compete in women’s sports in the United States.
The move follows a directive from President Donald Trump aimed at preventing male international athletes from competing against women in the United States.
USCIS spokesman Matthew Tragesser noted that the new policy specifies that certain athlete-related visa applications will now only be available to women.
“USCIS is closing the loophole for foreign male athletes whose only chance at winning elite sports is to change their gender identity and leverage their biological advantages against women,” part of the notice reads.
Tragesser added that the implemented policy is a matter of safety, fairness, respect, and truth
“It’s a matter of safety, fairness, respect, and truth that only biological female athletes receive a visa to come to the U.S. to participate in women’s sports. The Trump administration is standing up for the silent majority who have long been victims of leftist policies that defy common sense,” the notice reads.
Under the new guidelines, several visa categories, including those for individuals with extraordinary ability in fields such as science, the arts, education, business, or athletics, will be clarified and revised.
The affected visa types are "O-1A aliens of extraordinary ability," "E11 aliens of extraordinary ability," "E21 aliens of exceptional ability," and "national interest waivers (NIWs).
These visas are commonly used by professional and elite-level athletes to enter the country.
The new rules will make it harder for a male athlete who has competed against women to get these specific visas.
Even though this policy mainly affects transgender women, it avoids using the words transgender or trans women. Instead, it refers to "male athletes" who compete in women's sports.
The changes also apply to national interest waivers, which allow applicants to bypass certain labour certification requirements for a green card if they can demonstrate that their contributions significantly benefit the United States.
