The U.S. plans to shorten the valid length of visas issued to some Chinese citizens from June 11, the Associated Press (AP) reported on Tuesday, citing the State Department.
According to instructions sent to U.S. embassies and consulates, some Chinese graduate students will be given one-year visas, if they are studying in fields like robotics, aviation and high-tech manufacturing, instead of being given visas with the maximum possible length, AP reported citing an anonymous U.S. official.
Those fields are included in priorities in China's "Made in China 2025” plan.
The instructions also say that Chinese citizens seeking visas would need special clearance from multiple U.S. agencies if they work as researchers or managers for companies on a U.S. Commerce Department list of entities needing higher scrutiny. And those clearances are expected to take months for each visa application, AP cited the official as saying.
The State Department did not immediately provide comment on the report.
