US to scan social media of all H-1B, H-4 visa applicants from December 15

In a significant tightening of America’s visa-vetting system, the US State Department has announced late on Wednesday night, that all H-1B workers and their H-4 dependents will undergo mandatory social-media screening from Dec 15. Applicants will have to switch their social-media accounts to “public” settings to enable scrutiny. Immigration experts say the move marks a major expansion of Washington’s digital-footprint policy. Mitch Wexler, senior counsellor at global immigration law firm Fragomen, said, “An online presence review has been in place for F, M and J visa applicants (students and exchange visitors) since late June 2025; expansion to include the H-1B and H-4 categories is the first ramp-up of the policy.” He adds that, applicants should expect far more intensive review of th