The U.S. Department of Education has released data on foreign funding received by American colleges and universities in 2025, documenting more than 8,300 transactions totaling over $5.2 billion in reportable foreign gifts and contracts. These disclosures are mandated by Section 117 of the Higher Education Act, which requires institutions that receive federal financial assistance to report foreign gifts and contracts valued at $250,000 or more annually.
The newly released information is available to the public through a reporting portal launched earlier this year by the Department. The portal was upgraded today to include new data visualization features and now offers 11 additional data elements—a 61% increase in publicly available data points. According to the Department, since Section 117 was added to the Higher Education Act in 1986, American universities have reported a total of $67.6 billion in foreign funding, with most disclosures occurring since 2019.
U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon stated, “Thanks to the Trump Administration's new accountability portal, the American people have unprecedented visibility into the foreign dollars flowing into our colleges and universities—including funding from countries and entities that are involved in activities that threaten America’s national security. This marks a new era of transparency for the American people and streamlined compliance for colleges and universities, making it easier than ever for institutions to meet their legal obligations.” She added, “Under President Trump’s leadership, we remain firmly committed to ensuring that universities uphold their legal and ethical obligations to disclose the true origins of their foreign relationships. This transparency is essential not only to preserving the integrity of academic research but also to ensure the security and resilience of our nation.”
For 2025, Qatar accounted for over $1.1 billion in reported gifts and contracts—the largest amount from any single country—followed by the United Kingdom (over $633 million), China (over $528 million), Switzerland (over $451 million), Japan (over $374 million), Germany (over $292 million), and Saudi Arabia (over $285 million). Among recipient institutions, Carnegie Mellon University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology each received nearly $1 billion; Stanford University received over $775 million; Harvard University reported over $324 million.
Between February 28 and December 16, 2025, more than $2 billion in reportable gifts and contracts were submitted late by some institutions—an action described as a direct violation of statutory requirements.
From 1986 through December 16, 2025, Harvard University disclosed receiving more than $610 million from sources located in countries identified as "countries of concern" under federal law. Other top recipients included Massachusetts Institute of Technology ($490 million), New York University ($462 million), Stanford University ($418 million), and Yale University ($400 million).
Section 117 aims to protect national security and academic integrity by increasing transparency about potential foreign influence on higher education institutions. Noncompliance can result in enforcement actions by the U.S. Department of Justice or loss of eligibility for Title IV student aid programs.
The Department clarified that while it does not regulate which foreign entities may provide funding to U.S. colleges or universities, it is responsible for ensuring accurate disclosure.
The latest disclosures reflect reports submitted through December 16, 2025; after this date—and during migration from an older reporting system—institutions could resume submissions on January 2, 2026 via the new portal. Additional updates covering late December through January will be published by February 28.
President Trump signed an executive order on April 23, 2025 prioritizing transparency regarding foreign influence at American universities. The Department said these steps follow years when previous administrations did not enforce Section 117 effectively or maintain public-facing accountability tools.
Since January 20, 2025 four new investigations have been opened under Section 117 into Harvard University; University of Pennsylvania; University of California, Berkeley; and University of Michigan due to concerns about inaccurate or delayed disclosures.
