Highlights:
- US consular officers must now review LinkedIn profiles and resumes of H-1B applicants and their families.
- Scrutiny targets roles tied to content moderation, fact-checking, compliance, and online safety.
- Evidence of censoring protected U.S. speech may lead to visa ineligibility.
- The policy applies to all visas but focuses primarily on H-1B applicants in tech.
- The move aligns with the Trump administration’s broader agenda, emphasizing free speech.
The Trump administration has reportedly implemented new, significantly stricter vetting procedures for H-1B visa applicants, particularly those working in technology and digital content-related fields.
According to a US State Department cable dated December 2 and shared with all US diplomatic missions, consular officers must now review applicants’ LinkedIn profiles, resumes, and professional histories, along with those of accompanying family members, to determine whether they have engaged in any form of activity viewed as censorship of protected speech in the United States.
India and China become main target
H-1B visas remain essential to US technology companies that routinely hire large numbers of highly skilled workers from countries such as India and China. Many of the leadership figures in these companies, including several CEOs, were among the supporters and donors backing Donald Trump in the previous year’s presidential election. Despite the tech industry's reliance on the H-1B program, the new rules signal a firm shift toward ideological scrutiny within immigration policy.
The cable, as reported by Reuters, specifies that applicants who have worked in areas related to misinformation, disinformation, content moderation, compliance, fact-checking, or online safety could face additional review. If consular officers find credible evidence that an applicant was involved in censoring or attempting to censor legally protected expression in the United States, they are instructed to consider the applicant ineligible under a relevant article of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
Employment histories to be checked
While the directive applies to all visa categories, the State Department emphasized that H-1B applicants deserve particular attention due to their frequent involvement in the technology sector. This includes individuals working for social media platforms, financial services firms, or other companies engaged in practices the administration perceives as restricting protected speech.
The memo stresses that officers must thoroughly investigate employment histories for both new and returning applicants. The Trump administration has increasingly framed free speech protections as a priority in foreign policy, and this new visa policy reflects that stance. Earlier in the year, Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that individuals or entities responsible for suppressing American speech, especially on digital platforms, could face visa bans.
These changes signal a broader push toward monitoring the professional roles of foreign workers in the U.S. tech ecosystem, with potential implications for workers in moderation, safety, and compliance fields worldwide.
