United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has published in the Federal Register a 60-Day Notice inviting comments on its intention to start gathering information concerning the “online social media presence” for the past five years of foreign nationals who apply for certain immigration benefits.
The Notice has been published to enable USCIS to comply with Executive Order 14161, “Protecting the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats,” which requires the implementation of uniform vetting standards and the collection of all information necessary for a rigorous vetting and screening of all grounds of inadmissibility or bases for the denial of immigration-related benefits. USCIS has determined that execution of the Executive Order requires it to collect social media identifier data on immigration forms and/or within information collection systems. USCIS notes that this data will be collected from certain populations of individuals on applications for immigration-related benefits and is “necessary for the enhanced identity verification, vetting and national security screening, and inspection conducted by USCIS[.]”
USCIS plans to include in certain application forms new sections requiring information concerning an applicant’s online social media presence for five years preceding the filing of the application and has made available draft forms with the new sections included. The revised forms are Forms I-751 (Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence), I-485 (Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status), N-400 (Application for Naturalization), I-589 (Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal), I-192 (Application for Advance Permission to Enter as a Nonimmigrant), I-829 (Petition by Investor to Remove Conditions on Permanent Resident Status), I-730 (Refugee/Asylee Relative Petition), I-590 (Registration for Classification as a Refugee), and I-131 (Application for Travel Document). These sections ask for the names of the “Provider/Platform” and “Social Media Identifier” used by the applicant. USCIS has made available online the proposed versions of these forms. These forms may be accessed by visiting the Federal eRulemaking Portal site at https://www.regulations.gov and entering USCIS-2025-0003 in the search box. Public comments on USCIS’ proposed gathering of this information may be submitted online at the Federal Register site.
Once the 60-day comment period has closed on Sunday, May 4, 2025, USCIS will probably issue a Final Rule or other notice that formalizes the inclusion of the new social media information sections in the forms referred to above.
USCIS’ intention to collect social media information from applicants for certain immigration benefits underscores the agency’s more aggressive stance towards the scrutiny of the backgrounds of foreign nationals in the United States as well as the importance of ensuring that anyone present in the United States has not publicly posted any information or commentary that would lead USCIS to determine that an immigration benefit should be denied. Such information or commentary could include negative or disparaging comments about the United States, the current presidential administration, or the federal immigration agencies. Any comments that reflect a disposition towards violent conduct will also be seen as highly problematic, as will any factual information that conflicts with the information provided on the form submitted by the foreign national.
