US pauses immigrant visa appointments

WASHINGTON: The Administration of US President, Donald Trump has paused the scheduling of visa appointments for immigrants worldwide amid a crackdown on immigrants by the US government in the second term of the Republican leader in office.

According to a spokesperson for the US State Department on Tuesday, the government has launched a global training program in all US embassies and consulates across the globe and visa service appointments will be re-adjusted to fit in the training process.

Mr. Trump has adopted an aggressive policy of deportations and a crackdown on immigrants which has seen the revocation of visas and green cards and rejection of applications citing numerous issues ranging from political views to Palestinians protesting against the U.S. ally Israel's attack on Gaza.

Mr. Trump has stated that the crackdown is geared towards improving the security of the country.

The crackdown on immigrants has been faced with legal obstacles. A US judge on Friday declared a policy of the Trump administration of the suspension of issuance of immigrant visas to applicants from 75 countries illegal because the policy exceeded the statutory authority of Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

The State Department was not keen on divulging any detail about the nature and timeline of the training apart from stating that the training was designed to assist the consular officials in screening out applicants who are expected to depend on the public benefit of the US and comprehensive evaluation of the visa applicants.

The halt in visa appointments was first reported by the Financial Times, which reported that applicants for immigrant visas for interviews at US embassies and consulates have received an email informing them that their appointments have been put off to another date which will be informed of in due time.

The immigration crackdown by Mr. Trump has been criticized by the human rights groups for being discriminatory and a violation of the right to free speech. The human rights organizations have pointed out that the crackdown has also created a hostile environment in the U.S., especially for the ethnic minorities who have raised concerns about racial profiling.

As of now, nothing has changed regarding voting or voting by mail in the November elections.

While President Trump campaigned for stopping illegal immigration in 2024, he has also made legal immigration harder, for example, by imposing costly fees on certain work visas.