US visa, green card holders warned: LinkedIn mismatch may irk USCIS

Immigration attorney warns that mismatched LinkedIn details may lead to H-1B, OPT or green card refusals amid tighter US vetting

US Citizenship and Immigration Services actively checks LinkedIn profiles against visa petitions and green card applications, according to a US-based immigration attorney who says inconsistencies are leading to refusals.

 

In a social media post, Abhisha Parikh said her firm was seeing denials over details people did not realise could matter.

 

“Even small wording issues can be treated as unauthorised employment or misrepresentation,” she said.

 

She added a warning for those on temporary work routes or applying for permanent residence. “So, if you’re on H-1B, OPT, STEM OPT, or applying for a green card, your online presence must match your legal status exactly,” she said.

   

What applicants must check

 

Parikh advised applicants to review their online profiles before filing or while a case is pending.

 

She listed four common LinkedIn issues that, she said, are triggering visa and green card denials:

 

1.Job titles that do not match what was filed with USCIS

2. Multiple employers listed while on a single-employer visa

3. OPT employment that does not match what was reported to a school

4. Recommendations that reveal unauthorised work or side businesses

 

Her comments come at a time when scrutiny of social media activity has become part of broader vetting. 

 

Green card holder says profile was viewed

 

It is not only visa applicants who are concerned. A green card holder from India recently wrote on Reddit that his LinkedIn profile had been viewed by someone at USCIS, even though his case was closed in 2024.

 

In the post, he said it “freaked him out” to discover that officials appeared to be looking at his profile after his permanent residence had already been approved.

 

The discussion has circulated online as the United States tightens overall vetting processes. H-1B visa holders in India are also dealing with stamping delays following the introduction of social media vetting measures.

 

The Reddit user, based in North Carolina, said his LinkedIn profile was first viewed by a case officer and later by lawyers.

 

He wrote that he arrived in the United States in 2015 on an F-1 student visa and later moved to STEM OPT before being selected in the H-1B lottery in 2020. 

 

According to his post, he married an Indian-origin US citizen in 2021 and applied for a marriage-based green card in 2023. He said it was approved in January 2024 without an interview because it was a 10-year, no-condition green card, as the marriage had by then crossed two years.

 

The man added that he has no criminal record and only received a speeding ticket in 2023 before his green card was approved. He also wrote that he is still with his wife, ruling out the possibility that the profile view was linked to a marital breakdown.