Student visa appointments paused globally as US plans stricter vetting

The United States has paused the scheduling of new student visa interviews at embassies and consulates around the world.

The decision, which has caused concern among international applicants, is linked to an upcoming expansion of social media vetting and background checks for foreign students.

The move is part of a broader effort by the US administration to strengthen oversight of student and exchange visitor visas.

In a diplomatic cable sent on May 27, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio directed consular offices to stop adding new appointments for F, M, and J category visas until further notice.

“Effective immediately, in preparation for an expansion of required social media screening and vetting, consular sections should not add any additional student or exchange visitor (F, M, and J) visa appointment capacity until further guidance is issued,” Rubio wrote.

Interviews that have already been scheduled will proceed, and more detailed instructions are expected soon.

The measure is the latest in a series of steps by the administration to tighten entry requirements for international students, citing national security risks and campus-related unrest.

The State Department and the Department of Homeland Security have not yet commented on the development.

The pause follows earlier statements from Rubio suggesting a stricter approach. In March, he raised concerns about students misusing visas for activism rather than academic purposes.

Citing the case of Tufts University doctoral student Rümeysa Öztürk, who was arrested after publishing an op-ed in support of Palestinians, Rubio said, “If you apply for a visa to enter the United States and be a student, and you tell us that the reason you are coming to the United States is not just because you want to write op-eds, but because you want to participate in movements that are involved in doing things like vandalizing universities, harassing students, taking over buildings, and creating a ruckus, we’re not going to give you a visa.”

The decision also follows a recent legal dispute involving Harvard University. The DHS had attempted to block the school from admitting international students, but a federal judge stopped the move.

The administration has also threatened to cut off federal contracts with Harvard, valued at nearly $100 million, and redirect large sums of grant funding.

Despite the clampdown, some in the academic community are calling for a more balanced response.

Speaking on Fox Business, Kevin O’Leary, a lecturer at Harvard Business School, said, “These students are extraordinary individuals, and they don’t hate America. Why don’t we vet them first, check their backgrounds, clear them, and tell them, ‘You graduate Harvard, you’re an engineer or whatever, you stay here and you start a business here and you’ll get funded here and you’ll create jobs here because that’s why you came here in the first place.’”