Trump administration halts visa appointments worldwide as immigration crackdown enters new phase
By Kanishka Singh
WASHINGTON, Aug 25 (Reuters) - The Trump administration has issued a worldwide pause on visa appointments for applicants, marking an escalation of its immigration crackdown in the Republican president's second term. The move, confirmed by a U.S. State Department spokesperson on Tuesday, comes as the administration accelerates efforts to tighten the country's immigration systems beyond the border.
The spokesperson said the State Department had launched a global training initiative at all U.S. embassies and consulates, and that visa service appointments would be adjusted to accommodate the program. The department did not provide a detailed timeline or specify the scope of the training, but said it would help consular officers identify applicants deemed likely to become dependent on U.S. public benefits and ensure that visa applications are evaluated “comprehensively and consistently.”
The pause was first reported by the Financial Times, which said immigrant visa applicants with scheduled interviews at U.S. embassies and consulates had received emails informing them that their appointments were being rescheduled and that they would be notified of a new date later.
President Trump has pursued aggressive deportation efforts and a sweeping crackdown on immigration that includes revocations of visas and green cards, as well as denials of applications for reasons ranging from political opinions to participation in pro-Palestinian protests against Israel's assault on Gaza. Trump has argued the measures are necessary for domestic security.
But the crackdown has encountered legal resistance. A U.S. judge on Friday struck down a separate Trump administration policy that suspended immigrant visa issuance for applicants from 75 countries, ruling that the measure exceeded Secretary of State Marco Rubio's statutory authority.
Legal experts and immigration advocates warn that the new pause, while framed as a training measure, could create significant backlogs and uncertainty for applicants worldwide. It also signals a broader administrative effort to slow legal immigration channels, which have become a major target of the administration's second-term agenda.
Trump campaigned in 2024 on a platform of stopping illegal immigration, but his administration has also made legal immigration harder, including by imposing new and more expensive fees for certain work visas. Human rights groups have condemned the wider crackdown as discriminatory and a violation of free speech and due process rights. They also say it has fostered an unsafe environment in the U.S., particularly for ethnic minorities who fear racial profiling.
The State Department declined to comment on how many applicants would be affected or how long the pause would last, but officials indicated that the training program would be rolled out in stages.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Stephen Coates)