On June 19, 2025, the U.S. Department of State has announced appointments for F-1 and J-1 student and exchange visitor visa applicants will resume at embassies/consulates soon. This update follows the temporary pause in visa interview scheduling that was announced at the end of May as the Department of State implemented screening and vetting processes.
On June 4, 2025 the Trump administration issued Presidential Proclamation 10949 restricting the entry to the U.S. for specific foreign nationals. This proclamation went into effect on June 9th, 2025 at 12:01 AM EDT. Citizens of the following countries are affected by the entry restriction:
On May 28, 2025, the Department of State made a press statement regarding plans to revoke visas for some Chinese students with ties to the Chinese Community party or "studying in critical fields." At this time, they do not define "critical fields." The statement also indicates that they will implement measures to enhance scrutiny of visa applications from citizens of China and Hong Kong. At this time no further details were provided.
On May 27, 2025, ISSS was made aware that the U.S. Department of State temporarily paused all new F-1/J-1 visa appointments while they review its procedures related to social media screening as part of the visa application process. The U.S. consulates and embassies have also paused conducting and scheduling visa interviews for dependents applying for F-2 and J-2 visas. ISSS is closely monitoring the situation and will provide updates as soon as more information becomes available. While we understand that the pause is temporary, no specific timeline has been issued for when appointments will resume for new interviews.
On February 01, 2025, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem terminated Temporary Protected Status (TPS) under the 2023 designation for Venezuela, where benefits associated with the 2023 desingation will end on April 07, 2025. For additional information on this termination, please refer to the Federal Register Notice.