International Student Services

 

Maintaining F-1 Status


As an F-1 international student, you were admitted to the U.S. for “duration of status” (D/S is found on the I-94 card). This means you are permitted to stay in the U.S. as long as you maintain your status by fulfilling the requirements of being an F-1 student. The visa is a stamp placed in your passport by a U.S. Embassy or Consulate and is granted for entry purposes only. F-1 status is granted when you enter the U.S. and is regulated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (USICE).

Even if your visa is valid, you can lose your legal F-1 student status if you do not continue to comply with immigration laws regulating your stay in the U.S. If you fail to maintain your legal student status, you will need to speak to the Designated School Official (DSO) in International Student Services and discuss the process of applying to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for reinstatement.

 

Government Regulations You MUST Follow In Order to Maintain Your Legal Status:

— Maintain a valid passport at all times, unless exempt from passport requirements.

— Attend the school that USCIS has authorized you to attend.

— Complete an official immigration transfer whenever you change educational institutions. An immigration transfer must be completed within 15 days of the beginning of classes of your first semester at the new school. Note: An immigration transfer is a completely separate process from transferring academic credit from another school. An immigration transfer is not complete until a DSO processes the transfer on the new school’s I-20 form.

— Complete a full course of study during the fall and spring semesters (12 hours per semester for an undergraduate student and 9 hours per semester for a graduate student unless otherwise defined by the university. Correspondence courses and in absentia registration do not count toward a full course of study. If you are a continuing student, you are not required by USCIS to enroll in classes during the summer sessions; however, check with your department to see if they have any requirements for the summer. If you believe that you need to drop a course, see the DSO at International Student Services before you drop the course. **Graduate students may be eligible to enroll for 3 hours once all coursework has been completed and student is enrolled in thesis or dissertation.

— Apply for an extension of your program if you cannot complete your degree by the ending date listed on item number five on your I-20. You must apply for a program extension within 30 days prior to the completion date on your current I-20.

— Obtain a new I-20 whenever you make a change in your field of study or personal date (i.e. name correction, date of birth).

— Obtain a new I-20 whenever you make a change in degree levels. A new I-20 must be issued within 15 days of the beginning of classes of your first semester of your new program. This would include changing from English language studies to a university degree, from bachelor’s degree to master’s degree, from master’s degree to a doctorate, from Optional Practical Training to a new degree, from one level of degree to one of the same level (master’s to a second master’s degree), etc.

— Work off-campus ONLY if you have first received authorization from the DSO or USCIS. On-campus work does not require USCIS authorization. It is limited to part-time (20 hours or less per week) during the fall and spring semesters. On-campus employment may be full-time (more than 20 hours per week) during the summer and official school breaks. When you work on-campus, you must maintain your full-time student status or your employment will become illegal.

— Request a travel endorsement on your I-20 (page 3) from the DSO before leaving the U.S.

— Report any changes of address within ten days to USCIS on Form AR-11 and notify ISS of the change.