The US Embassy in India on Tuesday night released a notice informing applicants that their scheduled appointments had been rescheduled to different dates.
The Department of State of the US has postponed all scheduled interview appointments for H-1B applicants in India which has caused anxiety and uncertainty among thousands of applicants who had been looking forward to their visa interviews.
The last minute re-scheduling of these interviews comes at a time when the US has increased its strict digital vetting of H-1Bs especially through evaluation of their social media accounts.
The US Embassy in India on Tuesday night released a notice informing applicants that their scheduled appointments had been rescheduled to different dates.
“Should you receive an email notifying you that your visa appointment has been rescheduled, Mission India is eager to help you on your new appointment date,” the Embassy shared on X, cautioning that individuals arriving on their previous dates would be denied entry.
The primary question of concern is why there was such a rapid change after allowing people who applied for H-1B visas to submit their applications, even after they had been submitted.
Several attorneys familiar with immigration issues and social media have suggested that the delay may have resulted from the State Department’s requirement that all H-1B visa applicants undergo the same processing that is being used for student visas.
The State Department has announced that all H-1B applicants as well as their family members who qualify for certain types of dependents (the H-4 visa) will also be subjected to that type of processing. Most of the applicants whose interviews were set for mid-December to late-December had received word of their postponement up to about six months from now.
This delay could have serious consequences for many Indian nationals waiting for their H-1B visa to be renewed, several of whom are still trying to get into the United States before their visas expire.
While the State Department has not verified if all December appointments are delayed, the updated social-media policy is evident. Starting December 15, 2025, applicants are required to set their social media accounts to public visibility, allowing officials to assess posts for content considered hostile to the United States.
The State Department stated that the action was essential since “each visa decision is a national security matter,” emphasizing that the US must confirm that all applicants do not present a threat and genuinely plan to adhere to immigration regulations.
The increased digital oversight is viewed as a recent step in a wider campaign to limit the H-1B program, an initiative that escalated during the Trump administration. Previous modifications featured a suggested redesign of the H-1B lottery system and a substantial $100,000 charge for new applications submitted from overseas.
