US temporarily halts visa appointment scheduling worldwide — Pajhwok

KABUL (Pajhwok): The administration of US President Donald Trump has temporarily halted the scheduling of visa appointments for applicants worldwide, a media report said on Wednesday. Reuters reported, citing the US State Department, that it had launched a global training initiative at all US embassies and consulates worldwide and that visa appointment schedules would be adjusted to accommodate the training. The State Department did not provide details about the training or specify how long it would last, saying only that the programme was aimed at helping consular officers screen out applicants deemed likely to become dependent on US public benefits and ensuring that visa applications were evaluated “comprehensively and consistently”. Meanwhile, the Financial Times had previously reported that immigrant visa applicants who had already scheduled appointments at US embassies and consulates had received emails informing them that their appointment dates had been changed and that new dates would be announced later. The decision comes after a US federal judge on August 22 overturned the Trump administration’s policy suspending the issuance of immigrant visas to citizens of 75 countries, including Afghanistan, and declared the policy “patently unlawful”. According to reports, Judge Jeannette Vargas of the federal court in Manhattan ruled that the policy announced by the US Department of State in January was “patently unlawful” and conflicted with US federal immigration…