On Monday, Dec. 15, a Reddit user shared his experience during a visa interview at the U.S. consulate in Chennai. His account comes as the State Department begins implementing social media screening for H-1B and H-4 visa applicants, a move that has sparked widespread discussion among international workers and their families.
The applicant, who had applied to renew his H-1B visa, said he was one of the rare cases that were not deferred to next year. He arrived at the consulate at 8:30 in the morning, and his interview wrapped up around 9 a.m.
“After security and identity verification (fingerprints), they separated the H1B/H4 folks into a specific line. While standing there, it hit me … We are probably the select few (read: guinea pigs) who will pilot the new vetting process. Unfortunately, that theory held up,” he wrote in the Reddit post.
He also shared the story of a woman who was ahead of him in the H-1B and H-4 visa line before describing his own experience.
According to the Reddit user, after the consulate asked her routine questions about her job, the woman was further questioned twice about whether all her social media accounts were set to “public.” She was then handed a 221(g) visa notice, which came as a surprise. The visa officer explained that the consulate would need extra time to complete the review of her application.
The Reddit user’s own interview followed a similar pattern. He was first asked about his employment and then questioned about his social media accounts and whether they were set to public. The officer also asked if he had been keeping up with current events. After he confirmed that he had, he was handed a white 221(g) notice and told his application would undergo “administrative processing.”
A 221(g) notice can be issued in different colors, including white, blue, pink and yellow, each with its own significance. In this case, the white slip typically signals that the application requires additional review and does not amount to an outright rejection.
The officer also took his passport. The applicant said the Consular Electronic Application Center (CEAC) website currently lists his case status as “refused,” a designation often used during administrative processing. He added that his wife, who had also applied for a U.S. visa the same day, encountered a separate issue during her appointment.
In a later update, he noted that his wife’s case had moved forward. “My wife’s status transitioned from REFUSED to APPROVED. Hyderabad Consulate. Another Reddit user also verified this in a direct message regarding the Hyderabad Consulate,” he wrote, adding further context to the evolving situation.