Kathmandu- The United States has tightened the travel rules and canceled 85 thousand visas since January. The US State Department said the move was part of the Trump administration’s increased focus on immigration enforcement and border security, posting a social media post.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs, a total of 85,000 visas have been canceled since January. Of these, more than 8 thousand are student visas, a senior official informed. The main reasons for visa cancellations are crimes like drug abuse, driving under the influence, theft and assault.
Officials have made clear that some visas have been canceled due to expiration of their visas, for research related to supporting terrorism, and for other serious reasons. The administration also revoked the visas of people accused of cheering the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk in October. International students involved in protests related to the Gaza conflict are also subject to strict surveillance.
The Ministry of External Affairs also shared the slogan ‘Make America Safe Again’ along with the photo of President Trump. Last August, the Ministry had announced the implementation of a continuous tracking system to increase monitoring of more than 55 million foreigners with valid US visas while staying in the country.
America is continuously tightening its visa rules. On December 5, President Donald Trump ordered a tightening of the H-WB visa rules. Under this, H-WB applicants will have to make their social media accounts public, so US officials can view the applicant’s profile, posts and likes.
An H-WANB visa will not be issued if the applicant conducts any social media activity that is deemed contrary to the interests of the United States. It is mandatory for dependents (spouse, children, and parents) of H-WANB visas to make public their social media profiles when receiving an H-4 visa. Social media profile verification is mandatory for H-WANB visas, which is the first time, and the new rules will go into effect from December 15. The Trump administration has issued instructions to all embassies for this.
Since the month of August, the requirement to make public social media profiles has been implemented for study visas F-WAN, M-WAN and J-WAN along with visitor visas B-WAN and B-Tuca. All these six steps show the administration pursuing an aggressive policy towards taking strict action against visa violations and strengthening study control.
(collaboration with agencies)
