As of June 2025, the U.S. Department of State has introduced a new rule requiring all applicants for F, M, and J nonimmigrant visas to set the privacy settings of their personal social media accounts to “public” before submitting their visa applications. This policy is now in effect globally and impacts students, vocational trainees, and exchange visitors seeking to travel to the United States.
Who Is Affected?
• F Visa: Academic students
• M Visa: Vocational students
• J Visa: Exchange visitors (including scholars, researchers, and interns)
Key Requirements
Applicants must make all personal social media accounts public, removing privacy restrictions so U.S. officials can review their online content during the vetting process. Applicants must list all social media usernames or handles used in the past five years on their visa application (DS-160 form). The rule applies to all F, M, and J visa applicants worldwide, not just those applying from specific countries.
Refusing to set accounts to public or omitting social media information can result in visa denial and potential ineligibility for future U.S. visas.
Purpose and Rationale
The U.S. government states that this measure is part of enhanced national security screening. By reviewing public social media activity, officials aim to: verify the identity and eligibility of applicants and identify any potential security threats or intentions inconsistent with visa terms.
“Every visa application review is a ‘national security decision.’ … All individuals applying for an F, M, or J nonimmigrant visa are requested to adjust the privacy settings on all of their personal social media accounts to ‘public’ to facilitate vetting necessary to establish their identity and admissibility to the United States.”
U.S. Embassy statement
Implementation Details
The rule was announced in June 2025 and is effective immediately. U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide are enforcing the new requirement as they resume scheduling visa appointments for students and exchange visitors. There is no official guidance yet on how long social media accounts must remain public, but applicants are expected to comply at least throughout the application and vetting process.
Background
Since 2019, the U.S. has required visa applicants to disclose their social media identifiers as part of the application process, but this new rule goes further by mandating public access to the content itself. The policy was introduced after a temporary suspension of student visa interviews in May 2025, as the government prepared to expand social media vetting.
