Also, the US, recently, stated that it is expanding the online presence reviews for H-1B and H-4 applicants as part of the standard visa screening. It mentioned that the social media vetting is conducted worldwide for “all applicants of all nationalities” across the two categories.
MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the government has received several representations from Indian nationals facing problems with rescheduling of visa appointments.
“Visa related issues pertain to the sovereign domain of any country, we have flagged these issues and our concerns to the US side, both here in New Delhi and in Washington, DC,” Jaiswal said.
Tech companies across the US utilise the H-1B visa programme to hire foreign workers, with Indians forming the largest group among all the H-1B visa holders.
The US administration has taken several steps over illegal immigration ever since Donald Trump returned to office in January. Earlier, it asked all the applicants to keep their social media profiles ‘public’. Defending the social media check policy, the US State Department said, “Every visa adjudication is a national security decision”.
The mass cancellation of H-1B visa interviews are now creating significant delays for workers planning to return to the US.
