From the perspective of a professor who has hired PhD students during the pandemic (coincidentally, in the Netherlands -- where we don't have any "application fees"):

Our ultimate goal is to hire strong candidates. If there is a chance to hire a strong candidate, we do what it takes to make the hiring possible and overcome possible limitations. Therefore, the potential limitations you cite either don't apply, or only apply to a limited extent:

• "because of the pandemic" - That's a non-issue. There might be fields in which starting any PhD research currently is difficult per se, because they require physical attendance in the lab. But that's not specific for international students.
• "because of border restrictions" - That's mostly a non-issue as well. The border restrictions are generally set up in a way that allows people to immigrate to start a new job, including a PhD. There could be temporary issues when the border to a high-risk country is closed entirely, but experience has shown that these will ultimately be lifted.
• "because of visa issues" - This could be an actual issue, especially if the visa offices in your country are closed down due to the pandemic situation. Potentially, visa issues can delay the starting date of your position by many months. In that case, I as a hiring professor would be patient and show lots of understanding, in the hope that you will eventually arrive and start your PhD.

From the perspective of a professor who has hired PhD students during the pandemic (coincidentally, in the Netherlands -- where we don't have any "application fees" for PhDs):

Our ultimate goal is to hire strong candidates. If there is a chance to hire a strong candidate, we do what it takes to make the hiring possible and overcome possible limitations. Therefore, the potential limitations you cite either don't apply, or only apply to a limited extent:

• "because of the pandemic" - That's a non-issue. There might be fields in which starting any PhD research currently is difficult per se, because they require physical attendance in the lab. But that's not specific for international students.
• "because of border restrictions" - That's mostly a non-issue as well. The border restrictions are generally set up in a way that allows people to immigrate to start a new job, including a PhD. There could be temporary issues when the border to a high-risk country is closed entirely, but experience has shown that these will ultimately be lifted.
• "because of visa issues" - This could be an actual issue, especially if the visa offices in your country are closed down due to the pandemic situation. Potentially, visa issues can delay the starting date of your position by many months. In that case, I as a hiring professor would be patient and show lots of understanding, in the hope that you will eventually arrive and start your PhD.

From the perspective of a professor who has hired PhD students during the pandemic (coincidentally, in the Netherlands -- where we don't have any "application fees"):

Our ultimate goal is to hire strong candidates. If there is a chance to hire a strong candidate, we do what it takes to make the hiring possible and overcome possible limitations. Therefore, the potential limitations you cite either don't apply, or only apply to a limited extent:

• "because of the pandemic" - That's a non-issue. There might be fields in which starting any PhD research currently is difficult per se, because they require physical attendance in the lab. But that's not specific for international students.
• "because of border restrictions" - That's mostly a non-issue as well. The border restrictions are generally set up in a way that allows people to immigrate to start a new job. There could be temporary issues when the border to a high-risk country is closed entirely, but experience has shown that these will ultimately be lifted.
• "because of visa issues" - This could be an actual issue, especially if the visa offices in your country are closed down due to the pandemic situation. Potentially, visa issues can delay the starting date of your position by many months. In that case, I as a hiring professor would be patient and show lots of understanding, in the hope that you will eventually arrive and start your PhD.

From the perspective of a professor who has hired PhD students during the pandemic (coincidentally, in the Netherlands -- where we don't have any "application fees"):

Our ultimate goal is to hire strong candidates. If there is a chance to hire a strong candidate, we do what it takes to make the hiring possible and overcome possible limitations. Therefore, the potential limitations you cite either don't apply, or only apply to a limited extent:

• "because of the pandemic" - That's a non-issue. There might be fields in which starting any PhD research currently is difficult per se, because they require physical attendance in the lab. But that's not specific for international students.
• "because of border restrictions" - That's mostly a non-issue as well. The border restrictions are generally set up in a way that allows people to immigrate to start a new job, including a PhD. There could be temporary issues when the border to a high-risk country is closed entirely, but experience has shown that these will ultimately be lifted.
• "because of visa issues" - This could be an actual issue, especially if the visa offices in your country are closed down due to the pandemic situation. Potentially, visa issues can delay the starting date of your position by many months. In that case, I as a hiring professor would be patient and show lots of understanding, in the hope that you will eventually arrive and start your PhD.