Public social media now a must for US student visas

In a significant move aimed at tightening visa vetting procedures, the United States on Wednesday, 18 June, announced that all applicants for student and exchange visitor visas will now be required to make their social media accounts public.

According to a new directive issued by the State Department, consular officers will conduct a comprehensive review of the online presence — including social media — of individuals applying under the F, M, and J non-immigrant classifications, which include academic and cultural exchange programmes.

“Under new guidance, we will conduct a comprehensive and thorough vetting, including online presence, of all student and exchange visitor applicants in the F, M, and J non-immigrant classifications. To facilitate this vetting, all applicants for F, M, and J non-immigrant visas will be instructed to adjust the privacy settings on all of their social media profiles to ‘public,’” the State Department said in a late-night statement.

“It is an expectation from American citizens that their government will make every effort to make our country safer, and that is exactly what the Trump Administration is doing every single day. This is particularly true when it comes to our visa system,” a senior State Department official said.

“Secretary (of State, Marco) Rubio is helping to make America and its universities safer while bringing the State Department into the 21st century,” the official said, adding that under new guidance, consular officers will conduct a comprehensive and thorough vetting of all student and exchange visitor applicants in the F, M, and J non-immigrant classifications.

“To facilitate this vetting, all applicants for F, M, and J non-immigrant visas will be asked to adjust the privacy settings on all their social media profiles to ‘public’. Posts may resume scheduling F, M, and J visa applications. The enhanced social media vetting will ensure we are properly screening every single person attempting to visit our country,” said the official.

Asserting that the State Department is committed to protecting the country and its citizens by upholding the highest standards of national security and public safety through the visa process, it said a US visa is a privilege, not a right. “We use all available information in our visa screening and vetting to identify visa applicants who are inadmissible to the United States, including those who pose a threat to US national security,” it said.

The State Department said all its overseas posts will resume scheduling F, M, and J non-immigrant visa applications soon. Applicants should check the relevant embassy or consulate website for appointment availability.

“Every visa adjudication is a national security decision. 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,” it said.

Under the new process, consular officers are expected to perform an online presence review, including review of all social media, on all student and exchange visitor visa applicants. Applicants will be asked to set all their social media to ‘public’. Applicants are reminded that failure to do so could be construed as an effort to evade or hide certain activity.

Among other things, consular officers have been instructed to look for “any indications of hostility toward the citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles of the United States.”

Courtesy: 5wh.com