Crack Down on Off-Campus Jobs in US Pushes Indian Students into Financial Crisis

Stricter visa policy by the Trump administration has engendered fears among those Indian students in the United States who work outside their campuses to meet their expenses.

They are increasingly quitting their part-time jobs due to fears of arrest and deportation. International students on F-1 visas are permitted to work up to 20 hours a week but only on-campus. Any kind of off campus work is considered violations of the student visa rules.

Students work in restaurants, coffee houses, gas stations, and retail stores and are paid in cash, leaving no traces of their work. White Americans, particularly Make America Great Again (MAGA) supporters, see Indians and Indian students as outsiders who have been eating into their resources and jobs. 

This feeling of resentment has been simmering for a while. Trump exploited the American resentment against the immigrant groups like Indians and won their massive support to win a term. 

Crackdown against Indian students is just one among a series of anti-Indian measures Trump has sanctioned. It is expected to take heightened forms of exclusion and discrimination in the coming days.

Earlier working part time outside the campuses was widespread because the US government did not take notice of these minor violations.  But the Trump administration has amply made it clear that it will not tolerate any violations of the visa norms.

Anubhuti Deka, a student studying at Columbia university in New York, left her part time job at a cafe. She told First Draft, “I used to work in a small café after my college hours to cover my monthly expenses. I earned Rs. 1000/hour and worked six hours every day, earning Rs. 1.44 lakh in a month.”

She said that Rs. 1.44 lakh in a month was quite helpful to cover her expenses in New York. She could not get money from her home back in India as her parents are retired.

“Though it was a comfortable arrangement, I quit last week after hearing that immigration authorities might crack down on unauthorised work. I can’t take any chances, especially after borrowing Rs. 42.5 lakh to study here,” Mohan Yadav, a student in Chicago said.

Though illegal, students do these jobs to pursue their studies. US’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has set up a helpline to share it with details on immigrant students working off campuses. White people have started calling ICE to inform it about the students working in malls, cafes, and restaurants.

Seeking details about these students, the ICE says in its warning message that “if you see suspected illegal migrants, they could pose a danger to you. Call us for your safety.”

With the loss of part-time incomes, many students are now relying more heavily on support from their families and scholarships to manage their finances. This has put a strain on them and their families who will have to either borrow money, pawn family jewelleries or sell their farm lands to help their kids survive in a foreign land.

Over a dozen Indian students First Draft talked to have indicated they will reevaluate their work options in a few months but are currently relying on savings or financial support from friends and family back in India to get by. 

Ali Ahmad, a computer science student in Florida, said, “I have already used up most of my savings and have started borrowing small amounts from my roommate. I don’t know how long I can go on like this.”

Many Indian students, already grappling with rising living costs and a weakening rupee, find themselves in difficult financial situations. The Indian rupee hit a record low of 86.70 against UD dollar on January 13, 2025, adding to their burden of managing education loans and daily expenditure.

An average Indian student in 2024 spent Rs. 30 lakhs on academics, Rs. 14.8 lakh on accommodations, and Rs. 13 lakhs on other expenses, totalling Rs. 57.8 lakhs. Indian students constitute the largest group among the foreign students in the US. According to a rough estimate, out of over 3 lakh Indian students in the US, at least over thirty thousand of them have quit their part time jobs.

In 2019, Indian students in the US numbered 193,124, which increased to 210,000 in 2022.  Indian students incurred a total expense of Rs. 722 billion in 2019. Which went up to   Rs. 870 billion in 2022, and is expected to hit Rs. 1513 billion by 2025.

Though F-1 visas allow on-campus work, these opportunities are often not enough to cover living expenses, forcing students to seek off-campus jobs. Ali Ahmad’s situation reflects the broader struggles faced by over a lakh Indian student in the U.S. 

Alolika Banerjee, a Master’s student in New York, echoed similar sentiments.  She said, “I decided to put a full stop to my part-time job because I don’t want to take any risks. My parents made significant sacrifices to send me here, and I can’t afford to jeopardise my visa status or face deportation.” These developments have caused students mental stress as they face financial strain and an uncertain future in a foreign land.