More stringent vetting of the cards: US proposes social media checks as part of visa application process

By Mahasweta Muthusubbarayan

In May 2017, the State Department of the US instructed consular officials to collect social media identities of visa applicants who were established as requiring more rigorous vetting in order to confirm their identity. This instruction was applicable only in relation to applicants who required additional scrutiny to check for links to terrorism or other national security-related visa ineligibilities. Contrary to its former application depending on the merit of individual applications, the rule now seems to have become a blanket one, as the Federal Government has moved a proposal to collect the social media details of almost every immigrant and non-immigrant visa applicant seeking entry into the US.

The new vetting process

The new proposal is yet to be approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the President’s vision through the policies and regulations of the Executive. Once approved, most visa applicants will be asked to provide details of all social media handles and identities used by them in the past five years (there is still some confusion regarding whether the proposal applies only to US-based platforms or overseas ones as well), along with details of their telephone numbers, email addresses and international travel history for the same period. They would also have to provide details of any past deportations from any country as well as details of any relatives involved in terrorism. The proposal does not apply to the citizens of countries to which the US grants visa-free travel such as UK and Canada. Citizens from all other countries, including India, will be affected irrespective of whether they wish to visit the US for work or a vacation. The proposed rule is also inapplicable to diplomatic and official visa applicants.

Reasons behind the new process

One of President Trump’s campaign promises was to introduce ‘extreme vetting’ of immigrants entering the US, in order to curb terrorism and ensure the safety of America. He’d even gone so far as to say that he would ban immigrants from countries where terrorism is widespread and vetting is poor. In an online survey conducted by The Harris Poll among 1,934 registered American voters, it was found that reducing the total amount of immigrants in the US was an issue of top priority for most voters and that 79 percent of voters wanted secure borders. 62 percent of voters also believed that current border security is inadequate. According to the OMB, the poll shows overwhelming support for President Trump’s immigration priorities. However, the new proposal targets non-immigrant visa applicants as well. The State Department has estimated that the new requirements will affect roughly 710,000 immigrant and 14 million non-immigrant applicants. Trump has earlier proposed some other measures to reduce the number of outsiders entering the US under his ‘Hire American’ policy. Detailed background security checks now constitute another deterrent for US visa applicants.

Reactions to the proposal

Civil liberties groups have expressed concerns from two angles. The first being that such rules would constitute an infringement of free speech and expression as there is a possibility that government officials might misconstrue or misunderstand innocent posts. The second concern is with regard to the use of ‘terrorist activities’ as a cover to discriminate against immigrants by a biased administration. Some sectors of the public have also raised concerns that such an extensive screening process for every applicant might not be practically plausible and would delay the grant of a visa. The public will now have a window of two months to register their comments with the OMB before it takes a final decision regarding approval and implementation of the proposal.

Other changes in visa rules since Trump assumed office

Immigration and visa matters are no exception to President Trump’s ‘America First’ policy. He instituted two executive orders imposing travel bans on travellers from certain Middle Eastern countries, both of which were vehemently challenged in the Federal Courts. In September 2017, he introduced nation-specific restrictions targeted at nationals of Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela, and Yemen, in an executive order titled “Presidential Proclamation Enhancing Vetting Capabilities and Processes for Detecting Attempted Entry into the United States by Terrorists or Other Public-Safety Threats”. The only measure which has directly affected Indians has been changes and ambiguities with regard to the H-1B and L1 visa norms, as Indians constitute one of the biggest chunks of H-1B visa applicants. Anti-fraud measures and enhanced scrutiny, along with the potential impact of the RAISE Act—which seeks to introduce some merit-based criteria for grant of visas—have reduced the number of H-1B visa filings by almost 15 percent in two years. More policy changes can certainly be expected before President Trump fulfils his promise of ‘America first’.