5 months ago
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Pre-scheduled interviews of thousands of H-1B visa applicants slated for aboriginal this period successful India person been abruptly postponed by respective months, seemingly to scrutinise their societal media posts and online profiles.
Some of the applicants, whose visa appointments were scheduled adjacent week, person received e-mails from U.S. migration authorities informing that their interviews are being pushed backmost arsenic precocious arsenic May adjacent year.
The wide cancellation of scheduled interviews of the H-1B visa applicants successful presumption of the enhanced vetting measures is acceptable to effect successful important delays successful their instrumentality to the U.S. The rescheduling of the interviews is for each applicants who were antecedently fixed appointments from December 15 onwards.
Most of them were already successful India and are present incapable to instrumentality to the U.S. pending their caller interrogation dates since they don’t person a valid H1B visa to question backmost to the U.S. for their jobs.
For example, those whose interviews were scheduled for December 15 received emails postponing the day to sometime successful March. Applicants whose appointments were scheduled for December 19 were fixed caller dates successful precocious May.
It is learnt that interviews of respective different categories of visa applicants are besides being postponed successful presumption of the caller norms for scrutinising the societal media profiles of the applications.
The nonstop fig of applicants impacted by the delays successful the visa interviews is not instantly known.
The U.S. embassy successful India urged visa applicants not to travel to the consular offices based connected their antecedently scheduled interrogation date.
“If you person received an email advising that your visa assignment has been rescheduled, Mission India looks guardant to assisting you connected your caller assignment date,” it said.
“Arriving connected your antecedently scheduled assignment day volition effect successful your being denied admittance to the Embassy oregon Consulate,” it said.
Many visa applicants enactment retired anonymous posts connected societal media sharing their ordeal.
“My H-1B consular assignment successful Chennai, primitively connected December 18, got cancelled close aft I completed the biometrics process connected Tuesday (December 9, 2025), and was auto-rescheduled to April 30, 2026,” said 1 applicant.
Houston-based migration lawyer Emily Neumann criticised the cancellation of the H1B visa appointments successful India.
“Visa stamping feels similar a maze of pitfalls close now. Now, appointments are getting cancelled without informing and pushed retired by months,” Ms. Neumann said.
“There is nary predictability successful this process, and it is creating existent challenges for businesses and employees who request to travel,” she said connected societal media.
The Trump medication has been tightening the H1B visa programme nether its broader argumentation connected checking immigration. There has been wider scrutiny present of societal media posts and profiles of visa applicants.
Under the H-1B visa programme, companies enlistee overseas workers with specialised skills to enactment successful the U.S., initially for 3 years that tin beryllium renewed for 3 much years.
Indians made up an estimated 71% of each approved H-1B applications successful caller years, according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
In September, U.S. President Donald Trump signed a proclamation raising the interest for H1-B visas to a staggering $100,000.
