Trump administration stops scheduling of new student visa interviews
FILE-People hold signs as hundreds of high school students participate in a protest entitled "A Day Without Immigrants" through downtown Los Angeles on February 4, 2025. (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
The Trump administration is stopping the scheduling of new visa interviews for foreign students hoping to study in the U.S. while the State Department prepares to expand the screening of their activity on social media.
State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said during a briefing Tuesday that the U.S. uses every available resource to vet people applying for visas, the Associated Press reported.
What does this mean for foreign students?
Dig deeper:
A U.S. official told the Associated Press Tuesday that the suspension is supposed to be temporary and will not apply to student applicants who already scheduled their visa interviews. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an internal administration document.
The AP obtained a cable signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio noting that the State Department also plans to issue guidelines on expanded social media vetting.
RELATED: Trump admin restores thousands of foreign student visa registrations -- for now
"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, according to the cable.
According to the AP, an extended pause in scheduling student visas might lead to delays that may impact college, boarding-school, or exchange students' plans to enroll in summer and fall semesters.
And a reduction in enrollment of international students could hurt university budgets. To make up for cuts in federal research funding, some colleges transitioned to enrolling more international students, who often pay full tuition.
Back in April, the Trump administration reversed the termination of legal status for international students after many of the students filed court challenges.
Judges nationwide issued temporary orders restoring the students’ records in a federal database of international students managed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The Source: Information for this story was provided by the Associated Press, which spoke to a U.S. official on a condition of anonymity about the student visa interviews. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.