Chapter 22 Getting a Student (f-1 or M-1) Visa

• Library: U.S. Immigration Made Easy (Nolo) (2023 Ed.)

CHAPTER 22 Getting a Student (F-1 or M-1) Visa

A. Do You Qualify for a Student (M-1 or F-1) Visa?

1. Acceptance at a Government-Approved School
2. Bona Fide Student
3. Full Course of Study
4. Program Leading to the Attainment of a Specific Educational or Vocational Objective
5. Knowledge of English
6. Adequate Financial Resources
7. Intent to Return to Your Home Country
8. Bringing Your Spouse and Children

B. How Long the Student Visa Will Last

C. Quick View of the Student Visa Application Process

D. Step One: Your School Issues a SEVIS I-20

E. Step Two for Applicants Outside the U.S.: Applying at a U.S. Consulate

1. Preparing and Submitting Your Visa Application
2. Schedule an Interview at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate
3. Pay the Visa Application Fee
4. Pay the SEVIS Fee
5. Gather Supporting Documents
6. Attending Your Consular Interview

F. Step Two for Some Applicants Inside the U.S.: Applying to USCIS for a Change of Status

1. Preparing Your Change of Status Application
2. Submitting the Change of Status Application
3. Awaiting a Decision on the Change of Status Application

G. Step Three: Student Visa Holders Enter the U.S

H. Extending Your Student Stay

I. Traveling Outside the U.S. While You're a Student

J. Reinstatement of Student Status

K. Getting Permission to Work

1. On-Campus Employment
2. Employment as Part of a Scholarship
3. Practical Training
4. How to Apply for OPT Work Permission Based on Optional Practical Training
5. Economic Necessity
6. How to Apply for Work Permission Based on Economic Need

L. Transferring to a Different School

1. Applications for Transfers of F-1 Students
2. Applications for Transfers of M-1 Students

M. Changing Your Course of Studies

Whether you want to enter a short cooking course or get a Ph.D. in philosophy, a student visa might allow you to do so. In any given year, approximately 500,000 people will come to the U.S. to study. There is no limit on the number of people who can receive student visas. We'll actually cover two types of student visas in this chapter, the M-1 visa for vocational students and the F-1 visa for academic students. (See I.N.A. § 101(a)(15)(F), 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(f); I.N.A. § 101(a)(15)(M), 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(m).)

Not everyone planning to study in the U.S. needs a student visa. Tourists who are taking a class or two for recreational purposes can do so without violating their tourist visa status. All other persons in nonimmigrant status (except C transit and D crewmen) can attend school in the U.S. full time or part time, so long as they abide by the rules of their status. Green card holders can, of course, go to school wherever and whenever they want.

Spouses and children, if they have status in the U.S. through you, can go to school too, but if your status expires, they won't be able to stay in the U.S. to finish classes. In most cases, children lose their derivative status at the age of 21 and must apply for a change of status to F-1 or M-1 if they wish to remain in the U.S. to continue their course of study.

Key Features of the M-1 Student Visa

Here are some of the advantages and disadvantages of the M-1, vocational student, visa:

• The application process is reasonably quick and straightforward.
• You may come to the U.S. as a full-time vocational or nonacademic student enrolled in a program leading to a degree or certificate.
• You can transfer from one school to another, though only if you apply for and receive permission from USCIS first. Once you are six months into the program of studies, you are prohibited from transferring except under truly exceptional circumstances.
• You are never permitted to change your course of study.
• You may not work during your studies.
• You may get permission to work for up to six months after your studies are done. The job must be considered practical training for your field of study.
• You may travel in and out of the U.S. or remain there until the completion of your studies, up to a maximum of one year. If you have not completed your program in a year or by the time your school projected, whichever is less, you must apply for an extension.
• The maximum extension allowed is three years from the original start date.
• Visas are available for accompanying relatives, although relatives may not accept employment in the United States.

Key Features of the F-1 Student Visa

Here are some of the advantages and disadvantages of the F-1, academic student, visa:

• Once you've been accepted by a U.S. school, the application process is reasonably quick and straightforward.
• You may come to the U.S. as a full-time academic or language student enrolled in a program leading to a degree or certificate.
• You may not obtain an F visa to study at a public elementary school or a publicly funded adult education program. Nor may you obtain an F visa to study at a public secondary school unless you prepay the full cost of such program, for a maximum of one year.
• You can transfer from one school to another or switch academic programs by going through a simple procedure to notify USCIS.
• You may work legally in a part-time job on campus. Also, you may get special permission to work off campus if it is economically urgent or if the job provides practical training for your field of study.
• You may travel in and out of the U.S. or remain there until the completion of your studies.
• After college graduation, you may stay in the U.S. and receive training through work experience for up to 12 months, or 36 months if you have a "STEM" degree.
• Visas are available for accompanying relatives, but relatives may not accept employment in the United States.

SEE AN EXPERT

Do you need a lawyer? Applying for a student visa is fairly simple and doesn't usually require a lawyer's help. Most schools provide a great deal of help and advice with the application process, often through the services of a foreign student adviser or designated school official (DSO). If, however, you've had trouble getting visas in the past, have ever overstayed a visa, or are from a country thought to sponsor terrorism, a lawyer's help can be well worth the investment.

A. Do You Qualify for a Student (M-1 or F-1) Visa?

To qualify for an M-1 or F-1 student visa, you first must have been accepted at a school approved by the U.S. government. You must be also coming to the U.S. as a bona fide student pursuing a full course of study. Your intended school program must lead to an objective such as a degree, diploma, or certificate.

You must also have been accepted by the school of your choice and have enough money to study full time without working. You must be able to speak, read, and write English well enough to understand the course work or, alternatively, the school can offer special tutoring or instruction in your native tongue to help overcome any language barriers.

In addition to your academic and financial qualifications, you must prove that you intend to return to your home country when your program of studies is over.

At every government-approved school, there is a person on the staff who has primary responsibility for dealing with foreign students, usually known as the designated school official (DSO).

CAUTION

An interest in certain subjects could bar you from U.S. entry. If you're planning to study a subject with international security implications, such as biochemistry, nuclear physics, or missile telemetry, and you're from a country on the U.S. government's list of supporters of terrorism, you might not be allowed a student visa.

1. Acceptance at a Government-Approved School

Student visas are issued only to students who will attend U.S. schools that have received prior approval from USCIS for enrollment of foreign students. Virtually all public and accredited private colleges, universities, and vocational schools have been approved. To become approved, the school must take the initiative and file a formal application with USCIS. If you do not plan to attend a public school or a fully accredited college or university, before you apply for either an F-1 or M-1 visa you should check with the school you have selected to be sure it has been approved by USCIS to accept foreign students.

Coming to the U.S. to Look for a School

As a prospective student, you can come to the U.S. as a tourist for the purpose of locating a school you want to attend. If you do this, however, be sure to tell the consular officer at your B-2 visa interview that this is your intent so that the officer can make the appropriate annotation in your passport (usually "Prospective Student—school not yet selected").
Otherwise, if you later request a change of status from a visitor visa to a student visa, USCIS will presume that you committed fraud by applying for a visitor visa when you intended to come to the U.S. to study. USCIS can then refuse your application to convert to student status, unless you're able to prove that you had no such "preconceived intent." Therefore, if you enter the U.S. on a B-2 visa and do not have the annotation indicating that you are a prospective student, you will need to leave the U.S. before your authorized stay expires, so that you can apply for a student visa from your home country.

Once the school has accepted you, it will issue you a certificate (SEVIS Form I-20), which you can use to continue with your immigration application.

2. Bona Fide Student

Although it should go without saying, your intentions in coming to the U.S. must truly be to study. The U.S. government is on the lookout for people who use a student visa as a means to gain entry to the U.S. for other purposes. This visa has come under particular scrutiny since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, because some of the terrorists were on student visas. In addition, U.S. immigration authorities are always concerned with preventing people from entering the U.S. who have no intention of leaving at the end of their authorized stay. See Section 7, below, for more on proving...