The U.S. Department of State (“DOS”) has temporarily adjusted immigrant visa appointments at U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide while consular officers receive new training on the “public charge” ground of inadmissibility.
The measure applies only to immigrant visas—those issued to individuals seeking permanent residence in the United States. It does not apply to temporary nonimmigrant visas, including B-1/B-2, F-1, H-1B, L-1, or O-1 visas.
The change may affect applicants pursuing Green Cards through consular processing, including employment-based applicants in the EB-1, EB-2, EB-3, and EB-5 categories. For most affected applicants, the immediate concern is delay—not necessarily denial.
What Is Happening?
DOS has launched a global training initiative on the application of the public charge ground of inadmissibility under INA § 212(a)(4).
Public charge is not a new concept. U.S. immigration law permits the government to find an individual inadmissible if the person is likely to become a public charge.
To accommodate the training, DOS is temporarily adjusting immigrant visa appointments. Some applicants have reportedly received notices postponing or rescheduling interviews. DOS has not announced when regular appointment scheduling will fully resume.
How Does This Relate to the 75-Country Visa Suspension?
The timing is significant. Beginning January 21, 2026, DOS suspended immigrant visa issuance for nationals of 75 countries, including Brazil, while reviewing public-charge concerns.
On August 21, a federal district court vacated that policy, concluding that DOS could not categorically direct the refusal of immigrant visas based solely on nationality instead of making individualized determinations under the Immigration and Nationality Act.
The new worldwide training initiative appears different. Rather than automatically suspending visa issuance based on nationality, DOS appears to be preparing consular officers to conduct individualized public-charge assessments in immigrant visa cases.
In short, public-charge scrutiny has not disappeared. The way that scrutiny is applied may be changing.
How Does This Differ from Presidential Proclamation 10998?
These developments should also be distinguished from the separate restrictions imposed under Presidential Proclamation 10998.
That proclamation imposes full or partial visa and entry restrictions on nationals of designated countries based primarily on national-security, screening, and information-sharing concerns.
The three policies should therefore be viewed separately:
- The 75-country immigrant visa suspension was a public-charge-related policy that included Brazil and was recently vacated by a federal court.
- The August 26 worldwide adjustment involves immigrant visa appointments while consular officers receive additional public-charge training.
- Presidential Proclamation 10998 imposes separate nationality-based visa and entry restrictions that remain independently applicable to designated countries.
What Could This Mean for Employment-Based Green Card Applicants?
For EB-1, EB-2, EB-3, and EB-5 applicants processing their cases abroad, the immediate impact may be postponed interviews and delays in visa issuance.
The longer-term concern is potentially greater scrutiny of an applicant’s financial circumstances and ability to demonstrate economic self-sufficiency.
Approval of an employment-based immigrant petition does not eliminate the separate requirement that the applicant be admissible to the United States. Consular officers may examine financial circumstances more closely when applying INA § 212(a)(4).
For employer-sponsored applicants, evidence confirming the continuing job opportunity, salary, and financial viability of the position may become more important.
For EB-1A and EB-2 National Interest Waiver applicants, who may not have a traditional sponsoring employer, relevant evidence may include professional activity, prospective employment or contracts, income, assets, qualifications, and other indicators of economic self-sufficiency.
For EB-5 investors, proof of the qualifying investment does not resolve the separate public-charge analysis. The applicant’s personal financial circumstances may also be considered.
DOS has also introduced a procedure allowing certain applicants who would otherwise be inadmissible on public-charge grounds to seek a Public Charge Bond. This further indicates that public charge is receiving increased attention in immigrant visa adjudications.
Does This Affect Adjustment of Status?
The current DOS action concerns immigrant visa processing at embassies and consulates abroad.
Employment-based applicants seeking permanent residence through Adjustment of Status with USCIS inside the United States are therefore not directly affected by this temporary consular appointment adjustment.
Bottom Line
The August 26 development is not a worldwide suspension of all U.S. visas. Temporary visas such as B-1/B-2, F-1, H-1B, L-1, and O-1 visas are not covered by this particular measure.
Instead, DOS is temporarily adjusting immigrant visa appointments while consular officers receive enhanced public-charge training.
For employment-based applicants processing their cases abroad, the immediate effect may be delay. The more significant issue to monitor is whether consular officers apply greater scrutiny to employment, financial resources, and economic self-sufficiency when interviews resume.
Applicants should monitor communications from the responsible embassy or consulate and prepare for potentially more detailed public-charge questioning.
This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Immigration policies and consular procedures can change rapidly.