Starting Tomorrow, Three More US Visas Come With a Social Media Check

The United States is widening the net on social media screening for visa applicants again. From Thursday, October 1, the State Department will apply its online presence review to three more nonimmigrant categories: TN visas for professionals working under the USMCA trade agreement, TD visas for their spouses and children, and I visas for foreign media representatives such as journalists and film crews. The change was announced in mid-September and takes effect with the start of the new federal fiscal year.

Applicants in those categories are being told to switch the privacy settings on all of their social media profiles to public or open so consular officers can review them. The department says it uses all available information during screening to identify people who may be inadmissible, including anyone who may pose a threat to national security or public safety, and it has repeated its position that a US visa is a discretionary benefit rather than an entitlement.

The expansion is the latest step in a programme that has grown steadily over the past year. Online presence review already applies to students and exchange visitors on F, M and J visas, H-1B and H-4 workers, fiancé visas, religious workers, cultural exchange visitors and several other categories. Immigration practitioners report that consulates often continue to process applications regardless of privacy settings, but some applicants have received 221(g) administrative processing notices tied to social media reviews, which can delay a decision.

For most leisure travellers, nothing changes: this rule does not apply to people entering on the Visa Waiver Program or on B-1/B-2 visitor visas. The people who should pay attention are Mexican professionals applying for TN visas at consulates, their families, and international reporters planning US assignments. The practical advice is to apply early, make sure profiles are set to public before the interview, and ensure the handles listed on the DS-160 form match the accounts that actually exist.

Sources: Envoy Global, U.S. Department of State