The F1 visa is a student visa that is given to international students who want to attend educational institutions in the United States. It covers levels from elementary school to university and graduate school, including other degrees.
Do I Qualify to Apply for an F1 Visa?
To qualify to even apply for an F1 visa you must meet some specific conditions, such as:
- Get admitted into a SEVP accepted institution. The Student Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) has a list of schools, universities, and other institutions which meet the conditions and accept international students. It is recommended that before applying to your preferred schools or universities, you should first check the SEVP and see if those institutions are listed there. If yes, you can proceed to send them any documents that they require to make an admission decision. If not, you should not apply since you will not get the student visa even if you are accepted into the school.
- Be enrolled as a full-time student.
- Have strong ties to your home country. If you don’t prove and submit documents that you have strong ties to your home country and intend to go home after your educational program ends, it will be more difficult to get an F1 visa.
- Proof financial sufficiency. You should prove that you have sufficient funds in your bank accounts to cover the expenses of studying and living in the United States. This does not mean that F1 students are not eligible for scholarships. In fact, you are encouraged to apply for scholarship funds and organizations to lower your financial burden.
- Be proficient in English. You must prove that you can speak and understand English at a level that enables you to enroll in an academic program. Students can prove their language proficiency by taking standardized English proficiency tests such as the TOEFL or the IELTS.
F1 Visa Requirements
Here are the documents required to apply for an F1 Visa:
- Your valid passport.
- Form DS-160 for non-immigrant visa applications.
- Two photographs meeting the US Visa Photo Requirements.
- Proof of paid F1 visa fee.
- Form I-20. Your Form I-20 states the amount of funds you need to finance your education and living in the US. You must submit documents which prove you have that amount readily available. This can be done by submitting various documents, such as:
- Bank statements for the last 3 years
- Tax records for the last 3 years
- Pay stubs of previous employment
- If you have received a scholarship, you also need to submit proof of it
- Paying a semester’s or a year’s worth of tuition is also a good idea, but not mandatory
- If you are supported or sponsored by someone else in the US, you will need to submit Form I-134, Affidavit of Support and bank statements for the last three years of that person.
- If you are funding your US education through a loan, you must also show proof of the approved loan
- Documents that prove your previous education and current qualifications:
- Original transcripts
- Standardized test scores (TOEFL, IELTS, GRE, GMAT, etc.)
- Acceptance letters from the educational institution which accepted you
- Previous degree diplomas
- Proof of purchased health insurance for international students.
How to Apply for an F1 Visa?
To application process for the F1 visa goes through the following steps:
- Get your admissions documents from the SEVP institution.
- Apply online through the DS-160 form.
- Pay the application fee.
- Pay the SEVIS I-901 fee.
- Schedule your F1 visa interview.
- Submit the file with the F1 visa required documents.
- Attend the student visa interview.
Get your admissions documents from the SEVP institution
After you apply and are accepted into the school you want to attend, they will have to complete some procedures so that you can apply for the F1 visa. The most important document you need to have is Form I-20, Certificate of Eligibility for Nonimmigrant Student Status. Without this form, you will not be able to apply for an F1 student visa and attend your interview.
Apply online through the DS-160 form
After you get your Form I-20, you can start the usual application process. This includes filing the DS-160 form online with the necessary information about your visa status.
Pay the application fee
The application fee for the student visa is $160. You must pay this fee and get the receipt, which you will need later for your interview documents. You might have to pay additional fees based on your country of origin and the US Embassy you are applying from.
Pay the SEVIS I-901 fee
When you are admitted by the SEVP institution, your school immediately registers you in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS). To have full registration, there is a SEVIS I-901 fee. For the F1 visa, this fee is $200.
Schedule your F1 visa interview
After filing the DS-160 form and paying the fees, you will need to schedule your interview. The interview is a mandatory step before you get your student visa. Try to schedule it as early as possible, since there might be delays due to the heavy workload of the US Embassy. When you schedule it, you will receive an interview appointment letter which you will need later on in the application process.
Submit the file with the required documents
Before you go to attend your interview, you should prepare your file with the required documents for students.
Attend the student visa interview
When you go to attend the student visa interview, the questions will mostly revolve around your reasons for going to the US and the institution you are going to. The interviewer will try to assess whether you intend to return to your home country after you complete your degree.
F1 Visa Validity
When your visa is approved, it might be for the full time that you will be in school in the US, or for less. If your study program takes 1 year to graduate, the Embassy will most likely give you a visa that is valid for 1 year If your degree program is 2 years and you only get the visa for 1 year, you should then later apply to renew it. In this case, it is the best option to renew the F1 visa.
The validity of your F1 visa is for as long as it is stated on your I-20 form and I-94 form which is given to you when you enter the US.
If you are renewing your visa you should follow the same procedure. You might be able to waive the interview on the reason that you have already done it once and your intent is to continue your education for the remaining years to get your degree.
If your visa is approved, you are allowed to depart for the US 30 days before your program begins. You cannot enter the US any earlier than that.
F1 Visa Processing Time
In most cases, you will get the response on this visa immediately after the interview. At the end of the visa interview, the interviewer might congratulate you for getting the visa or will provide you with a document letting you know the reason for denial. This is because the processing of this type of visa actually happens before your interview. The interview is the last step for the US Embassy to assess whether they should issue the visa.
There are, however, cases where the response and processing of the F1 visa takes a few days, so you should be patient if that happens.
When Should I Apply for the F1 Visa?
After you are admitted into the institution of your choice, you can apply for the visa 120 days before you are scheduled to start your program. You cannot apply any earlier, but applying later might cause you a delay due to processing times. So as soon as the 120-day countdown begins, make sure you submit your application.
Can I Stay Longer Than My Visa Allows?
After your visa expires, you have a 60 day grace period to prepare for your departure to your home country. If your visa doesn’t cover the whole time that you will be in school in the US, you will have to apply for renewal or extensions. The extensions are approved only if you can prove you will be completing your degree in the US and you intend to return as soon as it is over.
Can I Work as an International Student in the United States?
You may work as an F1 student but only for short periods of time since your visa is a student and not a work visa. You are allowed to work part-time on campus while school is in session and full time during breaks. If you want to work outside of campus, you have two options.
If you, for example, find a job that requires a different type of visa, other than F1, then you are also eligible to change status. You just need to work through the instructions of US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and your employer or another petitioner.
Can F1 Students Apply for Permanent Residence?
Even though you have proved that you have strong ties to your home country, if you want to apply for a Green Card, you are allowed to do so on an F1 visa. It is a complicated procedure, though. You must either self-petition as a person with extraordinary abilities, get married in the US or prove that you will invest $500,000 in the US economy.
If these are not feasible for you, but you still want to remain in the US, the easiest way is to change status into a different type of visa such as an H-1B visa and have your employer sponsor you.
Travel Outside of the US
F1 visa students quite often have to travel abroad. They travel during university breaks or in case of emergencies. The travel can be to their own home countries or to other countries.
If you are an F1 visa student who wants to travel abroad, before you plan and book their travel you must follow some instructions. The instructions are to ensure that they can enter the United States again.
Bringing Family Members to the United States
In case you have dependents, such as a spouse or unmarried children under 21 years old, they are allowed to come to the US too. This can be done with an F2 visa.
The F2 visa has no cap and dependents should just fulfill the requirements and complete the application procedures to get the visa. To be eligible for an F-2 visa, you must fulfill the following criteria:
- Be the spouse of an approved F1 visa holder, or
- Be the unmarried child under 21 years old of an approved F1 visa holder
- Have the financial means to support the family during your stay in the US