Students walk on the campus of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, US, April 15, 2025. (Photo: REUTERS)

The order provides temporary relief to thousands of international students who were faced with being forced to transfer.

"Without its international students, Harvard is not Harvard," the school said in its lawsuit filed earlier on Friday in Boston federal court. Harvard enrolled nearly 6,800 international students in its current school year, equal to 27% of total enrollment.

The move was the latest escalation in a broader battle between Harvard and the White House. Trump and fellow Republicans have long accused elite universities of left-wing bias.