Federal Government Updates – Information Sharing from Greenheart

Since January 2025, there have been many changes from the U.S. Federal Government, some pertaining to outbound and inbound cultural exchange programs (U.S. Department of State BridgeUSA programs using J-1 non-immigrants visas). Greenheart will share timely updates here in hopes that it is easier for our stakeholders to understand what is applicable and how to follow these new orders, laws, and guidance. Should you have questions regarding these updates, please reach out to your Greenheart representative. We are here for you! — Haldis Toppen, Outreach Director, Greenheart International

Update April 2026

Current visa interview capacity issues: There are decreased visa interview capability across the world. This is due to staff shortages, increased vetting time due to the social media guidance, and now the FIFA World Cup. As a result, nonimmigrant visas like BridgeUSA are not being prioritized. Thanks to coordinated advocacy across the exchange community, 17 members of the House, 11 Republicans and 6 Democrats, signed a letter urging the State Department to ensure timely visa processing. All the efforts have led to increase appointments in Kazakhstan and we see the same in other countries. Operationally, we are adjusting in real time to protect your expected participant numbers, including shifting recruitment toward countries with clearer visa pathways. If new issues arise, we will reach out with solutions.

President’s FY27 budget proposes 68% cut to Department of State exchange programs: Released on April 3, this budget proposes funding the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) at $215 million for FY27, a 68% topline cut from the FY26 enacted level. The complementary Congressional Budget Justification (CBJ) provides further detail on how these cuts would be enacted, proposing the elimination of 15+ programs and slashing funding for countless more. The Alliance for International Exchange launched a campaign to Congress to reject these cuts.

No update on the proposed Visa Integrity Fee. Despite news of an October 2025 implementation, visa integrity fees are NOT being collected at this time and there have been no updates from the U.S. Department of State.

Participants traveling on programs outside of the U.S. At this time, the federal government changes in the U.S. have not directly impacted our travelers planning or departing on their programs with Greenheart Travel. However, we continue to encourage our participants to monitor events policy changes in their respective host countries, as well as issues related to global conflict.

Update January 2026:

The U.S. Department of State announced a pause on immigrant visa processing from 75 countries. This pause DOES NOT does not apply to non-immigrant visas like J, F, or H.

Update December 2025:

The U.S. Travel ban has been updated and will go into effect on January 1, 2026. The following classifications will be in effect:

Full Restrictions: Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Burma, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Mali, Niger, Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Yemen, and individuals travelling on Palestinian Authority issued or endorsed travel documents are also subject to a full suspension of entry.
Partial Restrictions: Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burundi, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Dominica, Gabon, The Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Venezuela, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Special case: Turkmenistan (restrictions remain for immigrants but have been lifted for non-immigrant visas)

All J-1 BridgeUSA programs are fully suspended under the full and partial restrictions. Should you have questions on how his can affect you, please reach out to your Greenheart contact.

Update November 2025:

The U.S. Government shutdown is over, for now. Operations have resumed, but future funding negotiations could lead to another shutdown in 2026. We will continue to monitor developments.

The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) will assume leadership of 12 international education programs previously managed by the Department of Education. This shift consolidates international education under ECA, signaling a stronger role for the Department of State in global education initiatives. For U.S. schools that host J-1 teachers, this could influence program administration and funding priorities. We are monitoring for more details and timelines.

Update October 2025:

U.S. Government Shutdown – Embassies will stay open, and visas will still be issued – but expect delays.

Recruitment for the YES Program for academic year 2026-2027 has been paused. Check www.yesprograms.org for updates on future programming.

Update July 2025:

Possible new fees for all nonimmigrant visas. As part of the “Big Beautiful Bill” that was passed and signed in July 2025, there are 2 new fees that will be applicable to our J-1 BridgeUSA exchange visitors:

Visa Integrity Fee – $250 (reimbursable if certain conditions are met)
This $250 fee is applicable to all nonimmigrant visas and, according to the bill, will be paid at the time the visa is issued. It is in addition to other visa application fees and, the bill language says, will not be waived or reduced for anyone. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary can increase or decrease the cost via a proposed rule. All fees that aren’t reimbursed will be deposited into the general Treasury fund.

Visa holders will be reimbursed the $250 if they:

Complied with all conditions of the visa, including not accepting unauthorized employment;
Have not sought to extend admission and departed the U.S. no later than 5 days after the last day of the visa’s valid period; or were granted an extension or adjustment to the status of lawful permanent resident.

Based on our current interpretation of the text, it is unclear how reimbursement of this fee might be processed. There is also no detail about how it would be applicable to visa holders changing status or what the five days means in the context of the 30-day grace period that comes with J-1 visas.

I-94 Fee – $24
This $24 fee is applicable to, according to the bill, “any alien who submits an application for a Form I–94 Arrival/Departure Record.” The DHS Secretary can increase or decrease the cost via a proposed rule. 20% of this fee will go to the Land Border Inspection Fee Account (CPB); the rest will go into Treasury general fund. The fee will not be waived or reduced for anyone, according to the bill. It is unclear per the statute what is meant by “application” or when the fee would be collected.

These fees are not interpreted to be an attack on exchange programs, but rather a way to offset additional costs that came from the bill. However, there is no current guidance on how or when this will be implemented. We will update this site once these details are shared.

Updates from January-June 2025

Enhanced social media vetting

In May this year, Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a pause on all new F, J, and M visa appointments while social media vetting guidance was collected and shared. Then in June, this pause was lifted.

However, while the pause officially been lifted, visa appointments have generally not resumed in the same manner as before the pause. Here are a few logistical delays we have noticed:

Participants are not approved in interview. They are put on administrative hold while the visa officers have time to review their accounts. This can take up to a few days or weeks as of right now.
Some posts have limited capacity for appointments either because of this additional step in approvals and/or because of staffing. This has led to delays in being able to find appointments.
Some posts are still taking time to understand the social media guidance and ensuring it complies with local domestic laws (e.g. privacy).

Additionally, here is what we know about the social media vetting procedure:.

The guidance gives wide discretion to consular officers to determine what qualifies as evidence supporting terrorist activity or demonstrating public approval for a terrorist organization. The message sent to Consular Officers notes that a visa applicant “need not express explicit support for terrorist activity” and that “a degree of public approval or public advocacy for terrorist activity or a terrorist organization” will suffice for a visa denial. It is further noted that “This may be evident in conduct that bears a hostile attitude toward U.S. citizens or U.S. culture (including government, institutions, or founding principles). Or it may be evident in advocacy or sympathy for foreign terrorist organizations. All of these matters may open lines of inquiry regarding the applicant’s credibility and purpose of travel.”
They recommend that all applicants put their social accounts to public for the vetting.
We do no know how this guidance is interpreted or completed.

As we learn more about the procedure or how specific posts are affected, we will share with our stakeholders. There is no indication, at that time, that the visa denial rate has increased with this new procedure, just that the process is taking longer.

The Alliance for International Exchange has provided a resource to help our exchange visitors prepare for their visa appointment, as well as tips for handling their arrival to the U.S. When referencing this document, it’s important to remember that the guidance provided is solely a recommendation and should not be construed as legal advice.

The President has issued his FY2026 budget proposal – cutting exchange programs by 93%

On May 2, 2025, President Trump released his fiscal year budget proposal for 2026 that would essentially eliminate State Department international exchange programs. This FY26 “skinny” budget proposes to cut State Department international exchange programs by $691 million, or by 93%. This would decimate and essentially eliminate the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA). Given the current budget is $741 million, this would leave only $50 million for all ECA programs and operations.

Note that this President’s budget request (PBR) is a proposal – a “wish list” so to speak – and is not binding. Congress can take it, take portions of it, or take none of it. More often than not, Congress goes against the PBR during their appropriations process. The previous Trump Administration proposed to cut ECA for four consecutive years, anywhere from 55-75%. These proposals were all rejected by Congress. Check the Alliance for International Exchange’s excellent blog post on this topic for more.

The good news is that this proposal was shut down by congress and ECA was funded at $667 million.

Reorganization in Department of State

On April 22, 2025 Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, shared his vision for a reorganization of the Department of State, including a new org chart. In a nutshell, the programs that Greenheart sponsors are not affected by this change. However, on July 11, there was a RIF (reduction of workforce) with 1,300 staff in the Department of State that were let go. The work we do was minimally affected, but it remains to be seen how this may eventually take shape as work is moved around and reorganized overall.

Visa restrictions, revocations and denials

In early 2025, there was an increase of visa restrictions, revocations and denials for international higher education students coming to the United States to study. At that time, there was s no indication that participants coming on the Bridge USA program (using J-1 non-immigrant) for Intern, Trainee, Teacher, Summer Work Travel nor High School are affected or are/will be targeted.

Reports of international higher education students being detained by ICE

In early 2025, there were reports of international higher education students being detained for various reasons. Greenheart is not privy to the reason for all these incidents. However, as a BridgeUSA visa sponsor, it is our responsibility to ensure their health, safety and welfare of all our exchange visitors. Because all of our exchange visitors are here legally, there is no reason they would be detained by Immigration & Customs Enforcement.

If questioned, we have recommended that participants carry a copy of their passport and official documentation proving their legal status. All American hosts and administrators have been informed of this guidance so that our participants are handled with care. Should a mistake happen and a participant is detained, there are protocols in place to work with the appropriate authorities to release them.

Funding for grant programs FLEX, YES, and ASFSWT

Greenheart is an implementing partner for three Department of State grants: FLEX Future Leaders Exchange Program, YES Programs, and Ambassador Scholarship Fund. These grants are supported by taxpayer money and thus are appropriated by Congress and administered by the Secretary of State. This funding is imperative for Greenheart to administer programs, particularly for those students who are in the U.S.

In January 2025, there was a pause on funding due to a OMB memo sent to all federal agencies. This memo was quickly revoked but payments were not immediately reinstated. Then on February 12, there was a 15-day pause issued by the Department of State on all funding to confirm that all DOS-grants are aligned with current Presidential priorities.

Funding has resumed, but in batches. Greenheart remains in constant contact with our colleagues at the Department of State to ensure funding is flowing and participants are taken care of.