Washington [US], May 28: The Trump administration has ordered all US embassies around the world to immediately stop visa interviews for foreign students pending a review of applicants' social media accounts.
The Guardian reported that on May 27, the US State Department issued a dispatch instructing consular departments at all US embassies to stop scheduling additional visa interviews (F, M and J) for students or exchange students until further instructions are given in a few days.
F visa is for foreign students , M visa is for people coming to the US to participate in vocational training programs while J visa is for people participating in academic and cultural exchange programs.
The directive could delay visa processing and impact US universities that rely on revenue from foreign students . There are currently more than 1 million foreign students in the US, contributing nearly $43.8 billion to the US economy and more than 378,000 jobs by 2023-2024, according to The Guardian .
"The Department of State is conducting a review of its current screening and vetting practices and processes for student and exchange visa applicants," the memo said. US officials are expected to issue guidance on expanding social media screening to all applicants for these visas.
Previously, the Trump administration took action against American universities, including freezing funding for Harvard University and banning the school from recruiting international students, citing allegations that its students held inappropriate political views such as anti-Semitism and pro-Palestinian protests on campus.
The government recently asked Harvard University to provide a list of information about international students studying at the school.
Since March, consular officials have been required to check visa applicants' social media for any support for "terrorist activities or organizations," according to The Guardian . Officials have been required to take screenshots of offensive comments or content for their records, as applicants can delete the posts.
In the near future, social media screening will apply to all student visa applicants, not just those who are under scrutiny for their frequent activities.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper