H-1B: Federal government to check applicants' social media, orders accounts set to public'

"Federal authorities will examine social media activity by all foreign citizens applying for the H-1B skilled-worker visa and the related H-4 spousal visa, and applicants must start keeping their social media accounts public, federal authorities announced this week. The U.S. Department of State's move to start conducting the online presence reviews, and bar applicants from keeping their social media accounts set to private, echoes a policy imposed earlier for student visas."

"The State Department uses all available information in visa screening and vetting to identify visa applicants who are inadmissible to the United States, including those who pose a threat to U.S. national security or public safety, the department said in the announcement Wednesday."

"The announcement came after a man from Afghanistan a former fighter in his home country for a CIA-trained paramilitary unit, who was granted asylum in the U.S. shot two National Guard service members in Washington D.C., killing one and triggering an administration crackdown on allowing foreign citizens into the U.S."

U.S. authorities will review social media activity for all foreign applicants seeking H-1B skilled-worker visas and H-4 spousal visas and require accounts to be public by Dec. 15. The State Department will use online presence reviews and other available information in visa screening and vetting to identify inadmissible applicants, including potential threats to national security or public safety. The policy mirrors prior student visa vetting and follows a shooting by an asylum recipient from Afghanistan that prompted a tighter screening posture. The H-1B program remains controversial over alleged worker displacement, staffing company practices, wage concerns, and recent Silicon Valley layoffs amid continued H-1B hiring.

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