The US State Department will now require H-1B applicants and dependents to make social-media accounts public for review. This expanded vetting is intended to strengthen background checks but introduces new procedural steps that may deter prospective applicants.
Email correspondence from the consulates confirms that under the new review policy, consular posts will interview fewer H-1B and H-4 applicants each day, and therefore, posts are cancelling upcoming appointments to align with the pace of the new expected processing queue, said Fragomen.
“Applicant biometrics appointments abroad are not being cancelled; biometrics are being taken at the scheduled time, but applicants are then informed that their visa appointment will be rescheduled to a later date, sometimes by several months.”
ALSO READ: H-1B approvals for Indian IT fall to a 10-year low as US tightens rules
The US government introduced new H-1B modernisation rules in early 2025 that redefined specialty occupations, tightened degree relevance criteria, and strengthened compliance expectations for employers. These updates have raised the scrutiny level for new petitions, affecting companies that traditionally relied on high-volume filings.
A significant development followed in September 2025 with the announcement of a one-time $100,000 fee for all new H-1B petitions. Although continuing-employment petitions are exempt, the additional cost has added a new layer of uncertainty for firms sponsoring new workers. For many Indian IT companies, this fee is expected to influence future hiring and onsite deployment strategies.
These overlapping changes have intensified industry discussions in the US and India. Immigration attorneys, technology firms, and visa applicants have raised concerns about the combined impact of higher costs, stricter occupational definitions, and broader scrutiny. Together, these shifts suggest a long-term recalibration in how employers approach H-1B recruitment and workforce planning.
Leave a Reply