India reacts as US urges increased vetting of study visa applicants
While the US ended an almost four-week pause on student visa interviews on June 18, consular officers are now required to review an applicant’s online presence, including social media activity and database records, to identify any signs of “hostility towards the citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles of the United States”.
At a press briefing last week, Randhir Jaiswal, a spokesperson for India’s ministry of external affairs, acknowledged that visa and immigration are sovereign matters, but stressed the importance of assessing applications “based on merit”.
“It is our belief that all visa applications of Indian nationals should be treated on the basis of merit,” said Jaiswal, while responding to queries from reporters.
“We remain engaged with the US side on all mobility issues and consular issues to ensure that the legitimate interests of Indian nationals are safeguarded.”
US officials have also been urged to flag any signs of “advocacy for, aid, or support of foreign terrorists and other threats to US national security”, including examples such as “support for Hamas, anti-Semitic harassment or violence, and political activism that may continue on US soil”.
Though such flagged instances may not lead to new or returning student visa applicants being ineligible under US law, any “suspicious content” will automatically trigger additional review to ensure the applicant’s activities align with their non-immigrant visa status.
We remain engaged with the US side on all mobility issues and consular issues to ensure that the legitimate interests of Indian nationals are safeguarded
Randhir Jaiswal, MEA spokesperson
The new measures could have a significant impact on the biggest source destinations – India and China – who contribute over half of all international students in the US.
According to the Open Doors Report for the 2023–24 academic year, over 331,000 Indian students and more than 277,000 Chinese students were enrolled in US institutions, though recent FY 2025 data (October–April) indicates a sharp decline in F-1 visa issuances for both countries.
While the US has already stepped up scrutiny of Chinese students, despite a softer tone in recent days, the US Embassy in India has reiterated the State Department’s requirement to include social media identifiers on visa forms, warning that omissions could lead to visa refusals.
“Visa applicants are required to list all social media usernames or handles of every platform they have used from the last 5 years on the DS-160 visa application form,” read a post on X, formerly Twitter, by the US Embassy in India.
“Applicants certify that the information in their visa application is true and correct before they sign and submit. Omitting social media information could lead to visa denial and ineligibility for future visas.”
With private social media accounts potentially leading to visa refusals under INA Section 221(g), unless made accessible for review, and an increased workload anticipated due to enhanced screening procedures, immigration experts have raised concerns over the new rules, citing complications ranging from processing delays to language barriers.
“Based on the cable, if a consular officer does 50 student visa interviews in a day, that officer is then going to have to vet social media for those 50 applicants. How can this possibly scale?” questioned US immigration lawyer James Hollis.
“This cable looks like it has been designed in a lab to slow visa processing down to a crawl,” he added.
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