Opposition to the introduction of visa restrictions on international students in the United States continues to grow, with 180 academic institutions in the country speaking out against the move, despite adjustments made to the policy by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

On July 6, ICE announced that students currently in the US on F1 and M1 visas "must depart the country or take other measures, such as transferring to a school with in-person instruction to remain in lawful status", if their school's classes are entirely online in the fall semester.

Anyone found violating the rules, ICE said, would risk "immigration consequences, including, but not limited to, the initiation of removal proceedings".

The policy was slammed by hundreds of thousands of international students in the US, and prompted higher education institutions in the country to launch lawsuits against ICE.

Amid escalating pressure, ICE issued a new statement on its website. When answering the question, "Are students attending schools that are entirely online barred from attending that school?", it said: "Students will not be permitted to enter or remain in the US to attend such schools, but they are not barred from continuing to attend all classes at these schools from abroad."