The Philippine Star

5 years of social media required on visa applicatio­n forms

- MICHAEL J. GURFINKEL, ESQ

Recently, the State Department revised immigrant and non-immigrant visa applicatio­n forms to add a question asking a person to list each social media platform they have used within the last five years. This includes the person’s username or handle they used on that media platform. If more than one platform or username or handle has been used, the person must disclose all that informatio­n. (They do not need to provide their password.)

Among the media platforms requiring disclosure are Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, YouTube, etc.

Disclosing a person’s social media is part of the Trump administra­tion’s Muslim travel ban initiative and “extreme vetting,” to determine whether a person may be “inadmissib­le” based on terrorism related issues. According to the State Department, “Social media can be a major forum for terrorist sentiment and activity. This will be a vital tool to screen out terrorists, public safety threats, and other dangerous individual­s from gaining immigratio­n benefits and setting foot on US soil.”

This means the US government can now go back and check any visa applicant’s Facebook and other social media postings for the past five years. And it does no good to now close the account and delete it, because the question asks you to provide informatio­n about all social media platforms for the PAST five years. That would include accounts that were closed or deleted in the past five years.

In addition, a person may be found inadmis

sible based on FRAUD if they failed to disclose any of their social media platforms within the past five years.

And a review of social media may be a factor in connection not only with uncovering terrorism, but could also be a factor in connection with a person’s eligibilit­y for various immigratio­n benefits. For example, if a person is being petitioned by a US citizen spouse, but they’re posting recent vacation photos on Facebook with their former boyfriend or girlfriend or ex-spouse, USCIS or the embassy may be concerned about whether the marriage to the American is fixed. Similarly, if a person posted that they just got a visitor visa and they are now moving to the US “permanentl­y,” that might also be an indication of fraud which would come back to haunt them.

While people are free to use social media and post whatever they like, they should now be aware that the US government is interested in what they are posting, whether it may relate to terrorism, fraud, or eligibilit­y for any immigratio­n benefit.

If you encounter issues with the US government over your social media postings, which may have been innocent, but are being interprete­d as potentiall­y fraudulent or harmful to the US, you may want to seek the advice of an attorney, who can evaluate your situation and hopefully resolve it with the US government. WEBSITE: www.gurfinkel.com Follow us on Facebook.com/GurfinkelL­aw and Twitter @GurfinkelL­aw Four offices to serve you: PHILIPPINE­S: 8940258 or 8940239; LOS ANGELES; SAN FRANCISCO; NEW YORK: TOLL FREE NUMBER: 1-866-GURFINKEL (1-866-487-3465)

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