U.S. to screen personal social media accounts of F, M, and J category non-immigrant visa applicants

Just days after the United States announced that foreign students applying for a visa must unlock their social media accounts for government review, the U.S. government has extended this condition to all individuals applying for an F, M, or J nonimmigrant visa.

In a social media post, the U.S. Embassy in India, said that “every visa adjudication is a national security decision,” while adding that the applicants will have to “adjust the privacy settings on all of their personal social media accounts to ‘public’ to facilitate vetting necessary to establish their identity and admissibility to the United States.”

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Noting that the United States has required visa applicants to provide social media identifiers on immigrant and nonimmigrant visa application forms, since 2019, it added that all available information will be used in the visa screening and vetting “to identify visa applicants who are inadmissible to the United States, including those who pose a threat to U.S. national security.”

The Trump administration last month temporarily halted the scheduling of new visa interviews for foreign students hoping to study in the U.S. while preparing to expand the screening of their activity on social media, officials said.

With regards to the information regarding visa scheduling, the U.S. State Department in a June 18 statement had said that the overseas posts will resume scheduling F, M, and J nonimmigrant visa applications soon. Applicants should check the relevant embassy or consulate website for appointment availability. 

The State Department further added: The United States must be vigilant during the visa issuance process to ensure that those applying for admission into the United States do not intend to harm Americans and our national interests, and that all applicants credibly establish their eligibility for the visa sought, including that they intend to engage in activities consistent with the terms for their admission.

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