Indian H-1B visa holders who went to India this month to renew US work permits are now stranded. American consulates abruptly canceled their appointments and rescheduled them for months later. Immigration lawyers say this affects hundreds or even thousands of skilled Indian workers. The delays began after the US started tougher social media vetting under the Trump administration. Many cancelled appointments fell between December 15 and 26, a time chosen by many due to the US holiday season. Emails seen by The Washington Post revealed the State Department delayed interviews to "ensure that no applicants … pose a threat to US national security or public safety." This visa program allows skilled foreign workers to live and work in the US for up to six years. Despite controversy around H-1B visas, US tech companies consider these workers vital. Lawyers called this "the biggest mess we have seen." Many workers now have expired visas and fear losing jobs. The exact wait time to clear visas remains unknown. PTI reported all interviews from December 15 onward were cancelled and rescheduled, pushing visa approvals back by months. Emily Neumann, an immigration lawyer in Houston, has over 100 clients stuck in India. Veena Vijay Ananth in India and Charles Kuck in Atlanta also report many cases. "I'm not sure there is a plan," said Ananth. A US state department spokesperson said that consulates now prioritize thorough vetting over quick processing. One Indian engineer had appointments cancelled on December 8 and rescheduled for July 2, over six months later. He managed to get a fast-track appointment but worries it may be delayed again. US tech firms are scrambling to cope. An anonymous source said, "They don’t know how to deal with this. How long are companies going to be willing to wait?" Stranded workers shared struggles online. On Blind, one wrote, "I'm literally stuck in India now. I'm on unpaid leave, been living off savings for weeks and now I gotta stretch it till March somehow." A physician on Facebook asked if appealing to US senators was possible after their appointment was pushed to March. Lawyer Kuck said the delays might be operationally necessary but are driven by politics. "Social media is the excuse," he said. "But the reason is the extraordinary rise in attacks on the H-1B programme, and Indian nationals in particular."