US Embassy in Seoul Resumes Visa Applications, Requires Social Media to be Made Public

SEOUL, June 20 (Bernama-Yonhap) -- The United States (US) Embassy in Seoul resumed accepting visa applications for student and exchange visitors on Friday, stating that it will carry out "thorough vetting" of applicants’ social media presence.

According to Yonhap news agency, the move follows the US State Department's announcement on Thursday (US time) that all American overseas missions will begin rescheduling appointments for F, M and J nonimmigrant visas.

“The Embassy will resume scheduling F, M, and J nonimmigrant visa applications soon,” it said in a media release, advising applicants to refer to the visa scheduling website at https://www.ustraveldocs.com/kr.

The embassy instructed all applicants for these categories to set the privacy settings on their social media profiles to “public”.

In a separate notice posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, the embassy reiterated that all applicants for F, M and J visas should make all posts on their social media accounts publicly viewable.

Applicants are also required to list all usernames they have used in the past five years on the DS-160 visa application form.

The embassy warned that failure to provide accurate and truthful information may result in the denial of the visa.

The decision comes weeks after the US suspended student visa applications as part of efforts to tighten screening of foreign nationals who may pose a threat to US national security.

-- BERNAMA-YONHAP