Could this be in response to a wacko federal judge ruling that a visa ban for 75 nations was “illegal”, hence, the State Department will just do it for all countries?
US halts all immigrant visa applications amid tightening restrictions
All US immigrant visa applications have been paused by the Trump administration as the state department moves to tighten restrictions and limit access to applicants who they deem could end up relying on US assistance, a state department official confirmed on Tuesday.
The agency launched the initiative at all embassies and consulates in early August, according to the official and visa appointments had to be adjusted to accommodate “in-depth training”, according to the official. The state department has been working on updated guidance and training since early this year, “to ensure all consular officers are fully equipped to evaluate every visa applicant comprehensively and consistently”, they added.
The Financial Times reports that applicants with interviews already scheduled were sent emails that their appointments had been canceled and that they would be informed of a new date and time.
Agency officials claim this will ensure visa applicants will not end up relying on US public benefits. But it’s part of a slate of strategies the Trump administration has employed to crack down on both lawful and undocumented immigration and create a more selective process for who can gain entry into the system.
Do we really need people coming in on work and visitor visas who are immediately going to need government assistance? That’s not what the visa system is about, but, previous administrations just simply let people in. Oh, and then there were all the Islamic extremists, who they are going to try and weed out
This week the Trump administration also announced plans to revoke visas from asylum seekers who initially entered the country for tourism or business. Up to 200,000 people currently seeking asylum could be affected, marking what would end up being the largest mass pulling of visas in the history of the US. The action is being taken in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security.
No one should be allowed to game the system in that way, so, if they claim asylum it’s complete BS. They need to need.
Last year, the State Dept announced that 50 million people were in the USA on visas, most of which had already expired. Add to that the tens of millions who entered the USA without visas and the population of the US is easily over 20% illegally here and being counted in the census for representation in the House.
Commenter typed: “…US is easily over 20% illegally here…”
There are approximately 21.6 to 24 million non-citizens living in the United States, according to recent data from organizations like the Cooper Center and the Migration Policy Institute. (About 7% or less of population only about half here illegally, therefore 3-4%, not 20%).
Global Visa Totals: While over 55 million people worldwide hold active multi-year U.S. visas, many are outside the country or travel repeatedly, meaning the resident count in the U.S. at any single moment is much lower.
The non-citizen population makes up roughly half of the total foreign-born residents in the U.S. and includes several legal statuses:
Lawful Permanent Residents: Around 23% to 49% of total immigrants hold green cards.
Temporary Residents: About 4% to 5% hold legal temporary visas, such as student or work visas.
Unauthorized Immigrants: Roughly half of all non-citizens (estimated between 12.2 and 15.8 million people depending on the specific tracking group and year) do not have permanent legal authorization, though some hold temporary protections like DACA or humanitarian parole.