New Social Media Screening Rules for Student Visas: What Applicants Need to Know
The State Department announced Wednesday that prospective students submitting applications for U.S. student visas must now unlock their social media accounts for government examination.
The notification advises F, M, and J visa applicants to set the privacy settings of their social media profiles to “public.” While visa appointments, which had been halted in May, are permitted to continue, a different cable, which was received by several news sites, instructed embassies and consulates to screen applicants for “hostile attitudes towards our citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles.” The directive coincides with the Trump Administration’s crackdown on colleges, which includes targeting students from other countries.
The message reiterated the Trump Administration’s recurring theme: “A U.S. visa is a privilege, not a right.” “Every visa adjudication is a national security decision. Throughout the visa application process, the United States must exercise caution to make sure that applicants do not intend to harm Americans or our national interests. Additionally, all applicants must credibly demonstrate their eligibility for the desired visa, including their intention to engage in activities that align with the terms of their admission. What you should know about the new guidelines is as follows.
The visa application process has reopened
They are now permitted to continue after embassies were instructed to halt all new student visa appointments for a few weeks. The freeze and stricter inspections would result in “unnecessary delays, fuels uncertainty, and damages our reputation as a welcoming destination for global talent,” according to a statement released at the time by Fanta Aw, CEO of NAFSA: Association of International Educators.
According to the Washington Post, the letter stated that consular personnel “should consider overall scheduling volume and the resource demands of appropriate vetting” by, for example, arranging fewer appointments, as additional vetting may put a strain on consulates.
According to the cable, which was first revealed by the Free Press, the State Department instructed embassies to give preference to students attending universities where less than 15% of the student body is international. According to a 2023 Associated Press research, overseas students make up over 15% of the undergraduate student body at around 100 universities and more than 15% of the total student body at about 200 universities nationwide, including all eight Ivy League schools.
In the past, Trump has stated that Harvard should limit its foreign enrolment to 15%. In retaliation for the prestigious university’s failure to adequately accede to a set of requests, the Trump Administration has singled out international students. Currently, almost 25% of Harvard’s student body consists of international students.
