New Delhi, Aug. 25 -- WASHINGTON - Hundreds of thousands of foreigners who entered the United States on business or tourist visas and later applied for asylum face the abrupt cancellation of those visas, under a plan the Trump administration confirmed on Monday that would constitute the largest single mass visa revocation in American history.

The State Department, coordinating with the Department of Homeland Security, intends to revoke B-1 and B-2 visas issued between 2016 and 2026 to individuals who subsequently filed for asylum or currently have pending asylum cases. The action is expected to affect up to 200,000 people, Al Jazeera reported.

The legal distinction is not a minor one. Revoking a visa is not the same as ordering a deport...