Overview

• Indian applicant Kaushik Raj lost a U.S. student visa despite a $100,000 Columbia scholarship, with the denial letter citing insufficient ties to India rather than online activity.
• Raj and other applicants believe consular review of multi-year social-media profiles influenced outcomes after they completed all other stages of the process.
• Recent guidance requires applicants to disclose social-media handles and, in India, to keep profiles public for consular vetting, extending processing and increasing administrative holds.
• Official messaging underscores that activities viewed as counter to U.S. interests can prompt revocation or deportation, with reports this year of foreign students removed after protest-related scrutiny.
• The stakes are high for India, which supplied nearly 30% of international students in 2023–24, as some candidates curb online posting or consider alternative study destinations.