US demands 5 years of social media data from visa seekers

In a major shift towards stricter immigration scrutiny, the US government has made it mandatory for all visa applicants to share the social media handles they’ve used over the past five years. The announcement was made by the US Embassy in India on June 26, 2025, emphasising that every visa decision is treated as a “national security decision.”

New US visa screening mandates public social media profiles

As per the guidelines, applicants must list all their social media usernames or handles—across all platforms—on the DS-160 form used for most non-immigrant visa categories. These include the F and M visas for students and the J visa for exchange visitors. The embassy warned that withholding or omitting this information could result in visa denial or even future ineligibility.

The embassy further advised that social media accounts should be set to ‘public’ so that US authorities can verify identity and assess admissibility under US law. This advisory applies especially to those applying for student, exchange, or visitor visas. The policy itself isn’t entirely new—since 2019, the US has been asking for “social media identifiers” as part of visa processing—but this renewed emphasis suggests tighter enforcement.

A digital poster shared by the embassy made the tone unmistakably clear: “Every US visa adjudication is a national security decision.” It went on to state that all available information, including social media presence, is used in visa vetting procedures. This fresh crackdown comes in the wake of a broader immigration enforcement drive under the Trump administration, particularly in Los Angeles. Earlier this month, the embassy issued a flurry of warnings around legal travel, visa misuse, and drug offences, reminding applicants that visas are a “privilege, not a right.”

On June 24, the embassy reiterated that individuals entering the US illegally could face detention, deportation, and a permanent ban on future visa eligibility. Similar warnings followed on June 19 and June 16, targeting both individuals and officials who assist in illegal immigration. The message is clear: the US is stepping up its efforts to scrutinise not just documents, but digital lives. Whether you’re applying for a student exchange programme or a temporary work visa, your online footprint is now fair game.

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