A sweeping new social media vetting policy introduced by the U.S. State Department has triggered widespread disruptions for H-1B and H-4 visa applicants across India, forcing hundreds of scheduled interviews to be pushed into next year. The sudden shift has sparked frustration among professionals and families who had planned long in advance for their appointments.

In an advisory issued late Tuesday, the U.S. Embassy in India confirmed that multiple visa interviews have been rescheduled. “If you have received an email advising that your visa appointment has been rescheduled, Mission India looks forward to assisting you on your new appointment date,” the notice read. The Embassy also warned that applicants who still show up on their original interview date despite a rescheduling notice will be denied entry at the consulate gates.

According to immigration attorneys and industry experts, several appointments that were previously fixed for mid and late December have now been pushed to March. Steven Brown, a senior immigration lawyer, said the embassy’s announcement validates reports circulating for days. “Mission India has cancelled numerous upcoming interviews to create room for the new social media screening process,” he noted.

Under the updated rules, all H-1B applicants — along with their H-4 dependents — are required to switch their social media accounts to public mode. Starting December 15, U.S. officials will examine applicants’ online activity to determine whether any content could pose national security or public safety concerns. Students and exchange visitors were already subject to similar monitoring, but this is the first time such scrutiny has been extended to H-category visas.

The State Department reiterated that “every visa adjudication is a national security decision”, underscoring its intent to tighten vetting for foreign workers entering the U.S.

The visa overhaul adds to a growing list of restrictive measures targeting employment-based immigration. In September, President Donald Trump introduced a one-time $100,000 fee for new H-1B petitions — a decision expected to severely impact Indian tech workers. More recently, the U.S. also paused immigration processes — including Green Card and citizenship applications — for applicants from 19 “countries of concern,” following the deadly shooting of National Guard soldiers by an Afghan national.