The US Embassy in the Philippines recently announced a crucial change in the application process for F, M, or J nonimmigrant visas, according to their official Facebook page.
“Effective immediately, all individuals applying for an F, M, or J nonimmigrant visa are requested to adjust the privacy settings on all of their social media accounts to ‘public’ to facilitate vetting necessary to establish their identity and admissibility to the United States,” the US Embassy said.
“Since 2019, the United States has required visa applicants to provide social media identifiers on immigrant and nonimmigrant visa application forms,” it added. “We use all available information in our visa screening and vetting to identify visa applicants who are inadmissible to the United States, including those who pose a threat to U.S. national security.”
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The F nonimmigrant visa is for those who wish to study full-time at an accredited academic institution in the US. An M nonimmigrant visa is for those pursuing vocational or nonacademic studies. Lastly, the J nonimmigrant visa is for individuals approved to participate in educational and cultural exchange programs in the United States.
As of writing, the post has garnered over 2,400 reactions and 1,300 shares. It also received different comments from netizens, from those who support the move to those who think that turning a social media profile public doesn’t necessarily establish their identity.
Some questioned what would happen if someone didn’t have a social media profile, while others thought this move was against their privacy.