The United States Mission in Nigeria has announced that students and exchange visitors applying for American visas must now make their social media accounts visible to the public.
This new rule applies specifically to applicants for the F, M, and J nonimmigrant visa categories. These visa types are generally granted to individuals who intend to travel to the U.S. for educational or exchange purposes.
In a statement shared on the embassy’s official X (formerly Twitter) page on Monday, the U.S. Mission noted that the updated guideline takes effect immediately.
“Effective immediately, 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,’” the statement read.
According to the mission, this new measure will support efforts to verify the identity and eligibility of applicants by allowing visa officers access to the online presence of those seeking entry into the U.S.
“We use all available information in our visa screening and vetting to identify visa applicants who are inadmissible to the United States, including those who pose a threat to US national security,” the embassy further noted in its post.
The move follows an earlier announcement made in June, in which the U.S. government hinted at tightening vetting processes for nonimmigrant student and exchange visas.
In that June 18 update, published on the U.S. Department of State’s website, authorities said they would carry out “a comprehensive and thorough vetting, including online presence,” for all applicants within the F, M, and J classifications.
“To facilitate this vetting, all applicants for F, M, and J nonimmigrant visas will be instructed to adjust the privacy settings on all of their social media profiles to ‘public,’” the statement said.
The embassy stressed that each visa decision is tied to national security concerns. “Every visa adjudication is a national security decision,” the Department of State said.
It also added that the visa application process is not a guaranteed right: “The United States must be vigilant during the visa-issuance process to ensure that those applying for admission into the United States do not intend to harm Americans and our national interests and that all applicants credibly establish their eligibility for the visa sought, including that they intend to engage in activities consistent with the terms for their admission.”
