OAN Staff Katherine Mosack
4:30 PM – Tuesday, August 5, 2025
Prompted by President Donald Trump’s recent executive order, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is updating visa policies to prevent biological male athletes who identify as female from entering the U.S. to compete in women’s sporting events.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services issued new guidance on Monday, effective immediately, that bans transgender women from claiming temporary work visas to compete in women’s sports. This also applies to visa categories for those with “extraordinary talent” in science, arts, education, business and athletics.
“Men do not belong in women’s sports,” USCIS spokesman Matthew Tragesser declared in a statement on Monday. “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.”
AdvertisementTragresser also emphasized that “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 statement also suggested that the USCIS will consider if the biological male has previously competed athletically against biological women, it would be noted as “a negative factor” when determining their eligibility for the visa.
Additionally, if a “male alien” has “gained acclaim in men’s sports,” but now seeks to compete in the U.S. among women, the USCIS will not consider this athlete to be “seeking to continue work in his area of extraordinary ability.”
The new restriction aligns with President Trump’s “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” Executive Order (EO), which was signed in February shortly after he took office for the second time.
The EO states that the U.S. policy is meant “to oppose male competitive participation in women’s sports more broadly, as a matter of safety, fairness, dignity, and truth.” This order fulfills Trump’s campaign promises to protect female athletes.
Shortly after the signing, The Hill also reported that they were told by a DHS administration official: “If you are coming into the country and you are claiming that you are a woman, but you are a male here to compete against women, we’re going to be reviewing that for fraud.”
Additionally, Trump said while signing the order in February that his administration would not allow biological male athletes to compete in women’s events in the upcoming Summer Olympics, which are scheduled to take place in Los Angeles, California, in 2028.
“We’re just not going to let it happen,” he warned.
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