The United States is expanding social media vetting requirements for a broader range of visa applicants, with some now being instructed to make their accounts public as part of the screening process.
The US Department of State announced it would widen its “online presence review” program from March 30, applying the checks to several additional temporary visa categories. Under the updated policy, affected applicants are being instructed to adjust the privacy settings on all of their social media profiles to “public” or “open” to help officials carry out vetting checks.
The expanded screening applies to a range of non-immigrant visa categories, including fiancé visas, religious worker visas, trainee visas, cultural exchange visas, and visas for victims of crime and human trafficking. The categories added to the review program include K-1, K-2 and K-3 visas, R-1 and R-2 visas, H-3 visas, and several others. Student visas and exchange visitor visas were already subject to similar checks.
In its official announcement, the State Department said the measures were aimed at strengthening national security screening. “Every visa adjudication is a national security decision,” the department said. “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.”
The US Embassy in Berlin also posted a graphic to Facebook warning applicants they should make their social media profiles public “to facilitate vetting necessary to establish their identity and admissibility to the United States”. The expanded screening applies to specific temporary non-immigrant visa categories listed by the US State Department, rather than all travellers entering the United States.
