PAAIA and Coalition Partners Launch Nationwide Advocacy Campaign in Support of ITIRA
The Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA), in partnership with the Iranian American Legal Defense Fund (IALDF), Pars Equality Center, and Iranian American Student Associations across the country, is launching a coordinated advocacy campaign in support of the Iranian Temporary Immigration Relief Act (ITIRA), H.R. 8740.
Introduced by Representatives Yassamin Ansari (AZ-03) and Tom Suozzi (NY-03), the bipartisan legislation would provide narrowly tailored, temporary protection and work authorization to eligible Iranian nationals already lawfully present in the United States whose good-faith immigration applications were affected by a USCIS adjudication pause and resulting delays. The legislation’s eligibility provisions address criminal convictions, national security risks, and specified ties to the Iranian regime. Senator Richard Blumenthal (CT) also plans to introduce companion legislation in the Senate.
The campaign will bring together students, community organizations, higher education institutions, and Iranian American leaders to educate policymakers and the public about why ITIRA is needed and the contributions Iranian students and immigrants have made to the United States.
Today’s Students, Tomorrow’s American Innovators
Iranian students and immigrants have strengthened America through science, medicine, and technology, as well as business, academia, national security, and public service. Iranians who came to the U.S. as students have become Fields Medal recipients, helped lead America’s Mars exploration program, pioneered advances in medicine and artificial intelligence, built successful American companies, and served in senior positions in the U.S. government under both Democratic and Republican administrations.
Today’s Iranian students have the potential to become the next generation of American scientists, engineers, physicians, entrepreneurs, public servants, and innovators.
According to the Institute of International Education’s Open Doors 2025 data, 12,656 students from Iran studied in the United States during the 2024–25 academic year, with more than 80 percent enrolled at the graduate level. Iranian international students also contributed an estimated $551 million to the U.S. economy in 2024.
Students educated at American universities should have a fair opportunity to continue their studies, work, and contribute to the country that has invested in their talent.
A Unique and Urgent Situation
Beginning in late 2025, the Trump Administration’s USCIS adjudication pause significantly delayed immigration decisions for Iranian students and those of other designated countries. A federal court struck down the broad holds. The Administration appealed, but an appeals court left the original ruling largely in place while the case continues. USCIS has resumed adjudications, yet the ruling cannot immediately resolve every affected application.
For affected students, a pending application is more than a processing delay. A pending application means uncertainty about a student’s ability to work, support themselves, or plan what comes after graduation. Some face expiring work authorization while they wait. That raises questions of housing and food costs. Students filed their in good faith, but they cannot control when the government decides their cases.
For some Iranian students and scholars, returning to Iran may also be dangerous. The January 2026 crackdown included mass arrests, killings, and intensified repression of dissidents and their families. Proposed legislation under consideration in Iran’s parliament could further restrict and criminalize academic and research ties with foreign universities and institutions, heightening concerns for students and scholars connected to American universities.
ITIRA offers a targeted response for eligible Iranian nationals already in the United States whose good-faith applications were affected by the processing pause.
Turning Education into Action
PAAIA and its partners have developed an ITIRA Advocacy Toolkit designed to help students, universities, and community advocates educate policymakers, universities, and the broader public. The toolkit includes an ITIRA one-pager, student data, materials highlighting Iranian American contributions, and resources for congressional outreach.
Student Associations and community members will use the PAAIA Action Alert and congressional call tools to encourage constituents to contact Congress. Student organizations will also be able to approach their universities and ask institutional leaders to support ITIRA.
PAAIA, IALDF, and Pars Equality Center are also contacting higher education organizations to seek formal endorsements and broader engagement. The campaign will also invite Iranian American leaders in science, medicine, business, technology, academia, and public service to show what students can achieve when given the chance to build their futures here in the U.S.
Building Support for ITIRA
ITIRA is limited to eligible individuals who were lawfully admitted or otherwise lawfully present in the United States and whose qualifying applications were affected by the adjudication pause. The bill includes additional requirements concerning physical presence in the U.S., expiring status or work authorization, and criminal, security, and regime-related grounds of ineligibility.
Through this campaign, PAAIA and its partners will help policymakers hear directly from affected students and professionals as well as the universities and communities who value their contributions.
Iranian students have strengthened America for generations. Today’s students deserve the opportunity to become tomorrow’s innovators, entrepreneurs, scientists, physicians, and public servants.
