President Donald Trump’s administration ordered United States embassies worldwide to stop scheduling appointments for student visas as it prepared to expand social media vetting of such applicants.
An official memo said social media vetting would be stepped up for student and foreign exchange visas, which would have “significant implications” for embassies and consulates.
The halt came amid a wide-ranging Trump crackdown on some of America’s most elite universities.
Trump sees these institutions as too left-wing, accusing them of failing to combat antisemitism when pro-Palestinian protests have unfolded on campuses.
On Tuesday, a US official who spoke under anonymity said that the suspension was intended to be temporary and not applicable to applicants who already have visa interviews scheduled.
Asked about the suspension at a briefing on Tuesday, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said the US uses every available resource to vet people applying for visas.
“We will continue to use every tool we can to assess who it is that’s coming here, whether they are students or otherwise,” Bruce said.
Responding to the move, China called on the US to protect international students.
An official said, “I urge the US side to earnestly safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of international students, including those from China.”
Hundreds of thousands of Chinese students attend US universities.
Foreign students who want to study in the US must schedule interviews at a US embassy in their home country before approval.
The memo, viewed by the BBC’s US partner CBS News, directed US embassies to remove any unfilled appointments for students seeking visas from their calendars.
However, they said those with appointments already scheduled could go ahead.
The pause would last “until further guidance is issued”, Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote.
The memo also said the state department was preparing for an “expansion of required social media screening and vetting” applicable to all student visa applications.
However, the directive did not specified the exact information to be looked for by the US authorities in the planned social media vetting.
