U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications • Hacker News Board

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

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Post by green_wheel » Thu, Aug 27, 2026, 4:03 AM UTC

Razengan wrote: post #394

trgn wrote: post #143

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> to enforce artificial borders and deny everyone this basic freedom. a very postnational view, humanist in a way, lipsius or erasmus would recognize it. that sort of individuated cosmopolitanism only works for educated men and women with means, who have or have the capacity to self-actualize. not for the masses. the nation is still a cradle to protect and nurture the commonwealth, and given that they took hundreds t…

> and given that they took hundreds to sometimes thousands of years to form, i don't think borders are artificial in the least. "Borders" as they are treated today began barely 200 years ago, and only started being enforced so strictly since WW1 and then even worse after WW2. For the vast >95% of human history, if you could walk to somewhere and survive there, you could live there. The real ironic shit is that most o…

> For the vast >95% of human history, if you could walk to somewhere and survive there, you could live there

For 95% of human history we were hunter gatherers living in extremely sparsely populated areas.

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

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Post by sandmn » Thu, Aug 27, 2026, 4:04 AM UTC

ElProlactin wrote: post #387

486sx33 wrote: post #209

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not until all Americans who can work have jobs

And what do you do about the people who only want to work in jobs that they're not qualified for, and who have unrealistic expectations about pay, benefits, work demands, etc.? Is every natural-born American entitled to a job that pays what they want, for the hours they want, in the location they want, regardless of their qualifications for the job?

But isn't that how market supposed to work? Company offers to pay x for the job, can't find anyone for x, so it raises salary to x+y.

I would understand logic of bringing people from other countries when there is a shortage of workers but with current market it doesn't seem to be the case.

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

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Post by [deleted] » Thu, Aug 27, 2026, 4:05 AM UTC

rayiner wrote: post #430

baby_souffle wrote: post #424

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It’s like saying that it’s “cruelty” to remove someone who uses a 2 hour parking spot as their permanent car parking. That's a very weak analogy for the moral issue here. The consequences are radically different; losing a parking space is a minor inconvenience; losing immigration status can/does involve relocation and upends employment, family, property, and years of life planning / general stability.

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[deleted]

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

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Post by cheonc720 » Thu, Aug 27, 2026, 4:05 AM UTC

galleywest200 wrote: post #167

trgn wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think many (if not most) countries in the developed world should reduce immigration, and usa in particular should abolish birthright citizenship. The first because a lower supply of labor is going to create breathing space for an entire working population who will see tremendous job upheaval due to AI automation. A lower aggregate demand on houses, services will also be welcome to take the fuel out of inflation, an…

Birthright citizenship is a constitutional right in the US same as freedom of speech, religion, the press, and the right to sue the government. The change would require 2/3 of all states to approve a constitutional amendment. It won't ever pass. Most of us are only citizens because someone up the chain was born under this rule. My family came here in the early 1700s and fought in the revolution. It would be a disgrac…

> Birthright citizenship is a constitutional right in the US same as freedom of speech, religion, the press, and the right to sue the government.

And we can amend constitutional rights. It most definitely will happen in our lifetimes.

> Most of us are only citizens because someone up the chain was born under this rule.

And?

You think the world in 2026 is exactly the same as in 1776?

What about slavery? Good idea in 1776 therefore good idea in 2026?

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

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Post by tptacek » Thu, Aug 27, 2026, 4:06 AM UTC

s1artibartfast wrote: post #418

tptacek wrote: post #392

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lots of countries have temporary worker status. The requirement to leave the country to re-up it appears to be a distinctively American thing.

Is extremely common in europe and asia

In which European countries?

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

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Post by phendrenad2 » Thu, Aug 27, 2026, 4:06 AM UTC

fblp wrote: post #236

dzonga wrote: post #19

the current admin are working hard to destroy the U.S as if they're foreign agents. not only are they making it hard & unbearable for families of US citizens & PR holders to be together. while at the same time - discouraging talent to come to the US at a crucial time when talent is at a premium due to A.I development. last the backwards energy policy of banning renewable energy.

These visa policies have already encouraged large tech companies etc to expand their Indian offices. It erodes the US tax base and means talent stay in their home country, which means more innovation happens outside the US. More start-ups are been founded in these countries because more talent is now there. Trump first term was make Mexico and Vietnam Great Again as companies moved their manufacturing there. This ter…

I've never worked at a company that gave offshore teams the same responsibilities as onshore employees. When shit gets real, and someone's head needs to be on the chopping block, it's always a same-shore employee. But reduced responsibility also means reduced impact. Let's see if that changes, and I'd love to see it happen, but I'm not holding my breath.

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

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Post by 0xDEAFBEAD » Thu, Aug 27, 2026, 4:06 AM UTC

GolfPopper wrote: post #495

consensus1 wrote: post #410

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We'll be fine. It didn't take Germany & Japan that long after they started WWII

Who's going to conquer the United States and restore rule of law and representative government by force?

By default we'll have a change of president in 2-3 years. Like Karl Popper said, the primary strength of democracy is the ability to remove bad leaders with minimal violence.

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

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Post by lowbloodsugar » Thu, Aug 27, 2026, 4:07 AM UTC

doug_durham wrote: post #211

sinecure wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This was never about talent. It's about companies hiring foreigners on h1b visas at below market wages where their life in the USA is contingent on their job performance forcing them to work harder and longer than their peers to remain in the country. It's a situation that only benefits companies, while harming US citizens who have to compete with the lower wages of foreigners.

I was a hiring manager. H1B candidates got exactly the same wage as native born. There were no differences.

I was an H1B and this is a fucking lie.

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

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Post by scoofy » Thu, Aug 27, 2026, 4:10 AM UTC

foltik wrote: post #506

15155 wrote: post #454

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> defending this administration "Leave to renew" has been policy for decades.

> isn't even trying to have a conversation in good faith. What about the sweeping halt of all legal immigrant visa processing?

Right, the point isn't that "Leave to renew" is some kind of horrible policy. Such bad-fucking-faith on display everywhere.

The point is maybe signal to people that we will soon be pausing all visa renewals so people who trivially have good jobs and good records know they ought to literally just plan on moving out of their apartment rather than have to deal with paying thousands of dollars to have someone else move their shit overseas, just to maybe get their visa renewed right when their shit arrives and they have to do the same thing all over again.

This would literally just helping law-abiding folks follow the law. But no, the cruelty is the point.

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

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Post by 0xDEAFBEAD » Thu, Aug 27, 2026, 4:10 AM UTC

epistasis wrote: post #242

erkt wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Inhumane maybe, but our government should owe its first allegiance to our citizens wellbeing, not imported workers.

How, in any way does this help the wellbeing of a citizen? Why bring up that very strange point, which is completely unconnected to the massive harm here. If anything, these policies harm the citizens of the US in a myriad of ways. There's zero benefit to be had from any of this. Except for the joy tha tthe cruel feel in causing others misery, but that's not citizens, that's just a few sick people.

>There's zero benefit to be had from any of this.

From the article:

"Updated guidance and training were being put in place to ensure that visa applicants don’t become a public charge under U.S. law or depend on government benefits intended for Americans in need, a spokesman for the department said Wednesday."