State Dept. pauses immigrant visa appointments worldwide, says staff need training
The State Department did not say when the appointments would resume.
The Trump administration has temporarily paused immigrant visa appointments worldwide, saying it needs time to train all consular staff on screening applicants who might become dependent on public benefits.
Appointments for visa services at U.S. embassies were being “adjusted” because of the “global training initiative” launched this month, the State Department said in a statement. It did not say when the appointments would resume.
“A more prosperous America means ensuring that visa applicants are not likely to become a public charge, as defined under U.S. law and regulation, and not likely to become dependent on U.S. public benefits reserved for qualified Americans in need,” the statement said, adding the training would ensure consular officers “are fully equipped to evaluate every visa applicant comprehensively and consistently.”
A former State Department official said immigrant visa appointments worldwide had been paused Monday through the end of the month. The training materials were being rolled out after a federal judge struck down the administration’s 75-country visa ban, which was framed as a way to prevent immigrants from entering who might use public benefits, on Friday.
As of Tuesday, the training materials still had not been disseminated, said the former official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share information on internal operations.
President Donald Trump has made several moves to tighten legal immigration pathways to the United States since his return to office last year. Many of those efforts have faced legal challenges.
In Friday’s ruling, the judge said that the visa ban violated antidiscrimination protections in federal immigration law, and was “a direct abrogation” of consular officers’ exclusive, congressionally granted authority to determine if someone is eligible for a visa.
The Trump administration has also taken other steps to curb migration. On Tuesday, the State Department said it planned to revoke the business and tourism visas of people who have claimed asylum after arriving in the country.
It is expected to affect those granted B1 and B2 visas — typically issued for tourism and business travel — between 2016 and 2026, who have sought asylum or are now seeking asylum. The department did not confirm the number of visas that could be revoked, but said it would be done on a “rolling basis.”
The department has also proposed charging employers seeking skilled foreign workers through the H-1B visa program a $103,265 fee, according to a regulation posted Monday.
The administration argues that the H-1B program, created by Congress in 1990, has been used to take jobs away from Americans.
Trump attempted to introduce a $100,000 fee last year through a presidential proclamation, but it was invalidated by a federal judge in June.