Immigration attorney Ryan Wilck expressed doubt over the reason the US Department of State pushed all H-1B visa interviews scheduled this December to beyond March 2026 and said that he thinks that the purpose is only to slow down the immigration process, as the immigration officials will obviously use AI to go through the social media accounts of the applicants and it would be done instantly. Many Indian H-1B holders returned to India for their visa stamping in December but they received a shock as consular offices in Hyderabad and Chennai sent out mass emails rescheduling the visa appointments. The new dates are in March 2026 at the earliest and those who can’t enter the US without a fresh stamping are now stuck in India for at least six months without knowing if they will be allowed by their companies to work from India.
‘We will take time’
A US Department of State, however, confirmed that the sudden rescheduling of the visa appointments in India is because of the social media vetting. The officials will take time to go through the social media accounts and ensure that no candidate turns out to be a national seurity risk, the official said. “The US Department of State conducts thorough vetting of all visa applicants, including an online presence review of all student and exchange visitor applicants in the F, M, and J nonimmigrant classifications. Beginning December 15, we are expanding the online presence review to all specialty occupation temporary worker (H-1B) visa applicants and their dependents in the H-4 visa classification. In every Visa case, we will take the time necessary to ensure an applicant does not pose a risk to the safety and security of the United States and that he or she has credibly established his or her eligibility for the visa sought, including that the applicant intends to engage in activities consistent with the terms of admission. The Department of State regularly shifts appointments as needed to match resource availability. We will communicate any changes directly to affected visa applicants,” the official said.
