Trump administration bars trans women athletes from obtaining ‘extraordinary ability’ visas
Aug 05
Written by Sophie Perry
The policy change specifically targets trans women (BRYAN R. SMITH/AFP via Getty Images)
The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is set to update visa policies to prevent the “entry of male athletes seeking to compete in women’s sports”, as the Trump administration continues its campaign to roll back trans rights.
The Department for Homeland Security issued guidance on Monday (4 August) to “support and align” with Executive Order 14201, “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports”, and vowing not to issue “extraordinary ability” visas to trans women athletes.
The executive order, signed by Donald Trump in February, described trans women’s involvement in female sports as “demeaning, unfair and dangerous” to women and girls.
The directive laid out that the policy of the US government was to “rescind all funds from educational programmes that deprive women and girls of fair athletic opportunities, which results in the endangerment, humiliation and silencing of women and girls and deprives them of privacy” as well as “oppose male competitive participation in women’s sports more broadly, as a matter of safety, fairness, dignity and truth”.
https://www.thepinknews.com/2025/08/05/trans-athletes-extraordinary-ability-visas-trump-us/