United States expands social media vetting for visa applicants

The United States Department of State has expanded its social media screening requirements for certain nonimmigrant visa applicants. Effective October 1, 2026, applicants for I, TN, and TD visas are required to set their social media profiles to ‘public’ or ‘open’ to facilitate the vetting process.

The expansion specifically impacts foreign media representatives and journalists (I visas), as well as professionals from Mexico and Canada under the USMCA (TN visas) and their dependents (TD visas). This measure builds upon existing digital vetting protocols that already apply to H-1B workers, international students, and various other visa categories.

According to the State Department, the use of publicly available online information is intended to help identify individuals who may be inadmissible to the United States due to potential risks to national or public security. Consular officials will use these profiles as part of the evaluation to determine an applicant's eligibility to enter the country.