US to increase H-1B vetting over speech 'censorship' concerns

Derek Wallbank and Nick Wadhams, Bloomberg News on Dec 3, 2025

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The Trump administration will increase vetting of applicants for H-1B visas, with a specific instruction to reject anyone who was involved in “censorship” of free speech.

The instructions were outlined in a State Department cable sent to U.S. missions abroad on Dec. 2.

“BE ON THE LOOKOUT: APPLICANTS RESPONSIBLE FOR OR COMPLICIT IN CENSORSHIP OF AMERICANS,” the cable seen by Bloomberg said. Reuters first reported the policy change.

H-1B visas are designed to attract high-skilled workers, and are widely used within the tech industry, including social media companies that the White House has criticized over questions of censorship abroad. The cable specifies that all individuals applying for visas are subject to the policy, but that H-1B applicants in particular are more likely to work in social media or financial services firms “involved in the suppression of protected expression.”

The instructions come President Donald Trump threatened a slew of aggressive actions to curtail legal migration to the U.S. in response to one National Guard member dying after being ambushed near the White House last month. The administration had previously implemented a $100,000 fee for H-1B visa applications as of September.

Consular officers are encouraged to review resumes and LinkedIn pages, as well as articles in trade publications.

Among the issues that would be flagged include complying with content moderation or censorship demands from a foreign entity or “adopting global content moderation policies inconsistent with freedom of expression.”

The State Department didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

In June, Secretary of State Marco Rubio ordered more scrutiny of the social-media profiles of any foreigners seeking to visit Harvard University, telling U.S. consular officers that applicants’ lack of an online presence might be enough evidence to deny a visa.