Hong Kong students looking to study at universities in the United States remain unable to secure visa appointments with the country’s local consulate, despite bookings becoming available in Beijing and elsewhere.

Three education consultancies contacted by the Post said they still could not book appointment slots for their clients as of Monday morning, further fuelling confusion among students amid Washington’s sudden policy shifts in recent days.

Samuel Chan Sze-ming, managing partner at Britannia StudyLink, a company specialising in placements at elite schools, said that he remained unable to secure visa appointments at the US consulate in Hong Kong on Monday.

But other centres he operated in Thailand and Vietnam were able to make the bookings with the respective diplomatic missions in those countries, Chan said.

Kitty Wu, director of Hong Kong-based Litz USA Student Service, also said that she had been trying to make bookings for her clients with the local consulate since last Thursday without success.

Will Kwong, managing director of consultancy AAS Education, said that one of his colleagues had been able to schedule an appointment for a mainland Chinese student through the US embassy in Beijing.