The US State Department has suspended the scheduling of new visa interviews for international students wishing to study in the US, a US official has said.
The US is preparing to expand the screening of applicants’ activity on social media, VisaGuide.World reports.
The US official told the AP that the decision is temporary and does not include applicants who have already scheduled their visa interviews.
An official message signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, obtained by the Associated Press, notes that the State Department will soon issue new guidance on expanded social media vetting.
Effective immediately, in preparation for an expansion of required social media screening and vetting, consulate sections should not add any additional student or exchange visitor visa appointment capacity until the guidance is issued.
When asked about the suspension, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said that the US uses all available resources in order to check 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.
Last week, the administration of President Trump revoked Harvard University’s permission to enroll foreign students by removing it from the program that permits schools to sponsor international students for visas.
However, this effort was quickly taken to court and is on hold because of a federal judge’s order.
More Than 300 Visas Revoked by US Within a Month
The United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, said that over 300 visas were revoked by the State Department, under his direction, in March alone, the majority of which were student visas.
A report from CNN revealed that since the beginning of 2025, over 300 student visas have been revoked from a large number of universities and colleges.
The United States President, Donald Trump, has tightened immigration rules, expanding the reasons for deportation.
Back then, the president-elect of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, Jeff Joseph, said that the State Department was using immigration tools in a way that caused mass hysteria.
DHS to Screen Foreigners’ Social Media for Antisemitism
The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), through a statement announced in April this year, will start screening internationals’ social media activity for antisemitism.
Announcing the new decision, the DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin said that “there is no room in the US for the rest of the world’s terrorist sympathizers”, stressing that the US is under no obligation to permit them to stay in its territory.