Regulations about the new requirement to provide social media accounts for US visas
Starting from June 1st of 2019, all applicants to US visas are required to provide information about social media accounts they have used in the past five years.
I wasn't able to find any document that regulates the following scenarios.
What if someone used say Facebook in the last five years but deleted their account a few months ago? Shall they restore the account and provide a link to it? Or shall they provide a link to the deleted account? I assume not mentioning that account will be considered a lie because they have used that account in the past five years. On the other hand, if I deleted an account, I do not use it "to collaborate, share information, and interact with others" (see the text in bold below), so is there no need to list it? A subquestion: what if one, after deleting their account, periodically restores it (say once a month) to contact someone? Should they keep the account alive for the time when the application is considered? Or should one guided by the rule that all information that is provided in the application must be topical at that time, and if at the time of application the account was inactive, then one should not list it, regardless of whether or not the account will be restored after the application has been submitted?
If one's account (again say on Facebook) has very strict privacy settings (so that even friends cannot see anything), should these privacy settings be modified so that the immigration inspector can see everything that the account owner can see (except private messages and things like that)?
What if someone has 2 or more Facebook accounts? I don't know whether there is an option to submit two or more accounts for one social network, but what if not? Again, not listing all accounts will be considered a lie, as far as I understand.According to a screenshot of the part of the new application form about social media, there is an option to add more than one account. Moreover, I believe there is no need to list the accounts that one doesn't use (see below).What if one have used some social network in the last five years, but doesn't remember the username/email/etc. because e.g. they signed up there 4 years ago using a temporary/fake email?Here are instructions from the screenshot I mentioned above: Enter information associated with your online presence, including the types of online providers/platforms, applications and websites that you use to collaborate, share information, and interact with others. Thus I believe there is no need to provide the type of account described in this bullet.
Best Answer
The minimum you need to do to satisfy their request is:
- List the name(s) of social media accounts you have used in the last five years.
If those accounts(s) have since been deleted, then you are under no obligation to attempt to "un-delete" them (which may not even be possible, depending on the platform). You do not have to change any privacy settings, either. They just asked for names.
If you happened to use a social media account within the last 5 years and you have either forgotten you did so, or forget the username, then clearly you can't list the username and you would have to suffer the consequences if their systems remember something that you have forgotten.
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Is it mandatory to provide social media details in ds160?
See below the exact text that is for guidance. In short, they are asking you to provide your Social Media presence for the last 5 years. You need to share the username that is used by you on the social media platform. You can add more than one social media account by platform.Do they check your social media when applying for a visa?
ESTA USA Social Media Information. Social media information is now a mandatory requirement for ESTA and visa applications for the USA. This latest change in visa policy is part of US President Donald Trump's plan to set a \u201cuniform baseline for screening and vetting standards and procedures\u201d.Why do visa applications ask for social media?
Their searches may lead to social media accounts such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or others, and these may be monitored and used to determine the credibility of information given in your visa application.Why do US Embassy ask for social media accounts?
Essentially \u2013 for security purposes. The U.S. government wants to ensure that people who are applying for visas are who they claim to be and that they are being transparent about their reasons for coming to the United States.Immigration/ DHS Social Media Policy to collect data on visa application forms
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