US wants F, M, J non-immigrant visa applicants to adjust social media settings

New Delhi, Jun 23 (PTI) All individuals applying for an F, M, or J non-immigrant visa are requested to adjust the privacy settings on all of their social media accounts to "public" to facilitate vetting necessary to establish their identity and admissibility to the US under its law, the country's embassy here said on Monday.

In a brief statement, the US Embassy also said since 2019, the US has required visa applicants to provide "social media identifiers" on immigrant and non-immigrant visa application forms.

The statement was shared on the X handle of the embassy.

"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.

It comes against the backdrop of an immigration crackdown by the Trump administration in California's Los Angeles recently.

"Effective immediately, all individuals applying for an F, M, or J nonimmigrant visa are requested to adjust the privacy settings on all of their social media accounts to public to facilitate vetting necessary to establish their identity and admissibility to the United States under US law," the statement said.

The embassy on June 19 had said that a US visa is "a privilege, not a right", and its screening does not stop after a visa has been issued and authorities may revoke it if one breaks the law. The embassy had also said that using illegal drugs or breaking any US laws while on a student or visitor visa can make one ineligible for future US visas.

Earlier this month, the US Embassy in India also issued statements, underlining that while people travelling legally to America were welcome, illegal entry or abuse of visas won't be tolerated by the country.

The United States "will not tolerate" those who facilitate illegal and mass immigration to the US, its embassy here had said on June 16.

The US Embassy had also said the United States has "established new visa restrictions" targeting foreign government officials and others who do so. PTI KND KVK KVK