After fee hike, Donald Trump administration hikes H-1B visa vetting. Check new rejection rules

The Donald ruff organization has proclaimed an growth in the vetting of H-1B visa applicants for extremely skilled workers, with an internal state department memo outlining new rules for rejection.

This comes after the administration hiked the application fees for H-1B visas, which allow US employers to hire foreign workers in specialty fields, to a whopping $100,000 in September of this year.

These visas are crucial for US tech companies, which recruit heavily from countries including India and China. Many of those companies' leaders threw their support behind Donald Trump in the presidential election held last year.

According to a Reuters report, an internal memo from the US state department has laid out new rules for vetting of H-1B visa applicants, saying that anyone involved in "censorship" of free speech should be considered for rejection.

The cable, sent to all US missions on December 2, orders consular officers to review resumes or LinkedIn profiles of H-1B applicants - and family members who would be travelling with them - to see if they have worked in areas that include activities such as misinformation, disinformation, content moderation, fact-checking, compliance and online safety, among others.

"If you uncover evidence an applicant was responsible for, or complicit in, censorship or attempted censorship of protected expression in the United States, you should pursue a finding that the applicant is ineligible," under a specific article of the Immigration and Nationality Act, the report quoted the cable as saying.

The state department is yet to respond to the contents of the memo.

The cable said while all visa applicants were subject to this policy, it sought an especially heightened review for the H-1B applicants given they frequently worked in the technology sector "including in social media or financial services companies involved in the suppression of protected expression."

"You must thoroughly explore their employment histories to ensure no participation in such activities," the cable said.

The new vetting requirements apply to both new and repeat applicants.

The Donald Trump administration has made free speech, particularly what it sees as the stifling of conservative voices online, a focus of its foreign policy.

Officials have repeatedly weighed in on European politics to denounce what they say is the suppression of right-wing politicians, including in Romania, Germany and France, accusing European authorities of censoring views like criticism of immigration in the name of countering disinformation.

In May, secretary of state Marco Rubio threatened visa bans for people who censor speech by Americans, including on social media, and suggested the policy could target foreign officials regulating US tech companies.

The Trump administration has already significantly tightened its vetting of applicants for student visas, ordering US consular officers to screen for any social media posts that may be hostile towards the United States.

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