U.S. to start social media vetting for H-1B and H4 visa seekers

Starting December 15, the United States will expand “online presence review” of all “specialty occupation temporary worker (H-1B) visa applicants and their dependents in the H-4 visa classification”, a spokesperson of the U.S. Embassy said on Wednesday (December 10, 2025).

“In every visa case, we will take the time necessary to ensure an applicant does not pose a risk to the safety and security of the United States and that he or she has credibly established his or her eligibility for the visa sought, including that the applicant intends to engage in activities consistent with the terms of admission,” said the spokesperson explaining the reasons behind the scrutiny of the applicants’ online presence.

“The Department of State regularly shifts appointments as needed to match resource availability. We will communicate any changes directly to affected visa applicants,” the spokesperson further said.

In September this year, U.S. President Donald Trump imposed a $100,000 annual fee on fresh H-1B visa applications, triggering panic among the vast IT workforce of India that works as a bridge between the two countries. The announcement was apparently aimed at facilitating employment opportunities for the U.S. citizens in the IT sector.

The latest announcement on vetting social media activities has added another layer to the grant of H1-B visa seekers, which is expected to prolong the waiting time for fresh applicants.

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Some applicants, whose visa appointments were scheduled next week, have received emails from U.S. immigration authorities informing that their interviews are being pushed back as late as May next year.

The mass cancellation of scheduled interviews of the H-1B visa applicants is set to result in significant delays in their return to the U.S. The rescheduling is for all applicants who were previously given appointments from December 15 onwards.

For example, those whose interviews were scheduled for December 15 received emails postponing the date to sometime in March. Applicants whose appointments were scheduled for December 19 were given new dates in late May.

It is learnt that interviews of several other categories of visa applicants are also being postponed in view of the new norms.

The exact number of applicants impacted by the delays in the visa interviews is not immediately known.

The US Embassy urged visa applicants not to come to the consular offices based on their previously scheduled interview date. “If you have received an email advising that your visa appointment has been rescheduled, Mission India looks forward to assisting you on your new appointment date,” it said.

“Arriving on your previously scheduled appointment date will result in your being denied admittance to the Embassy or Consulate,” it said.

Many visa applicants put out anonymous posts on social media sharing their ordeal. “My H-1B consular appointment in Chennai, originally on December 18, got cancelled right after I completed the biometrics process on Tuesday, and was auto-rescheduled to April 30, 2026,” said one applicant.

Under the H-1B visa programme, companies recruit foreign workers with specialised skills to work in the US, initially for three years that can be renewed for three more years. Indians made up an 71% of all approved H-1B applications in recent years, according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

(With PTI inputs)