The administration has ordered a temporary freeze on visa appointments at American embassies and consulates around the world. The State Department said the move was intended to allow for a global training program for consular officers, in order to improve screening and ensure a uniform examination of visa applicants, among other things, regarding the possibility that they would be dependent on public assistance in the United States.According to the Financial Times, visa applicants who had already been scheduled for interviews received notices of postponed appointments, and were informed that a new date would be set in due course. At this time, no timetable for the resumption of appointments has been announced.