2020 Student visa reentry required documents

As the start of the Fall semester is near, more and more students are planning to fly into the United States. In this blog post, student visa re-entry required documents will be listed. Students can find time-sensitive information regarding the COVID-19 in this post as well.

Contents

• Documents based on the immigration regulations and original ICE guideline
• Documents based on the most recent ICE guideline

Documents based on the immigration regulations and original ICE guideline

Immigration regulation 8 CFR 214.2(F)(4) guide students to bring the Form I-20 that is signed properly (The whole paragraph of 8 CFR 214.2(F)(4) can be found below). Having proper signatures means the following:

1. Your DSO should put his/her signature on the first page
2. (For returning students only) Your form I-20 should be endorsed by the DSO for travel within a year from the date you enter the U.S.
   • If the travel signature was done more than a year ago, you should reach out to your DSO and obtain an electronic copy of the form I-20 with new travel endorsement.

The properly signed I-20 is also one of the student visa reentry required documents by original ICE guideline. Below is the list of basic requirements for an F-1 students to re-enter the United States by the original ICE guideline on traveling:

• A Form I-20, endorsed for travel and signed by your DSO
• You have been out of the United States for less than five months
  • Please refer to “Documents based on the most recent ICE guideline” below regarding the 5 month rule
• A current passport valid for at least six months after the date of your reentry or, if you are from one of the countries listed below, a passport that is current through the date of entry
• A valid, current visa or you travelled to contiguous country or adjacent island for less than thirty days
• Financial information showing proof of necessary funds to cover tuition and living expenses
  • As financial information can be found in the Form I-20, some students have no issues with entering the U.S. without any financial documents. However, it is always a good practice to prepare the one to play safe.

In addition, some CBP (Custom and Border Protection) officials might ask you to provide Evidence of student status or Name and contact information for the school’s Designated School Official (DSO). To proof your enrollment, you might want to carry recent tuition receipts, transcripts or/and enrollment verification letters on you. Generally, recent tuition receipts can be obtained from Student Accounts, while transcripts and enrollment verification letters can be retrieved by reaching out to Registrar’s. DSO information can be found on the Office of International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) webpage.

(4) Temporary absence. An F-1 student returning to the United States from a temporary absence of five months or less may be readmitted for attendance at a Service-approved educational institution, if the student presents:

(i) A current SEVIS Form I-20, properly endorsed by the DSO for reentry if there has been no substantive change to the most recent Form I-20 information; or

(ii) A new SEVIS Form I-20 , if there has been a substantive change in the information on the student’s most recent Form I-20 information, such as in the case of a student who has changed the major area of study, who intends to transfer to another Service approved institution or who has advanced to a higher level of study.

8 CFR 214.2(F)(4)

Documents based on the most recent ICE guideline

5 month rule

According to the latest ICE update which was published in July 24th, students who left the United States due to COVID-19 but completed the course of study online can seek re-entry to the U.S. as their SEVIS record is remain Active.

If a nonimmigrant student was enrolled in a course of study in the United States on March 9, 2020, but subsequently left the country, that student likely remains eligible for a visa since the March 2020 guidance permitted a full online course of study from inside the United States or from abroad.

CLARIFYING QUESTIONS FOR FALL 2020 BASED ON MARCH 9 SPRING GUIDANCE BROADCAST

Remarks in the I-20

Lots of foreign students and colleges in the United States panicked when the ICE guideline, which prohibits students from taking online classes came out in the 6th of July. Back then the guideline required staff members to update students’ I-20s with remarks like “the school is not going to operate fully online,” “this student is not registered into 100% online,” etc. However, as this guideline was rescinded, students no longer have to obtain the updated I-20. The latest ICE guideline made it clear that both I-20s with remarks and I-20s without remarks work perfectly fine. When the 7/6 ICE guideline was just rescinded, it was reported that some CBP officers still asked students about their class registrations and remarks. This seems changed, though, as anecdotal evidences prove that more and more students have had no issues during the inspection.

Schools who have already issued Forms I-20 for F or M students in accordance with the July 6 guidance or July 7 FAQs (rescinded on July 14) do not need to reissue those Forms I-20, unless there are other substantive changes that would trigger a Form I-20 update. Similarly, schools that did not issue Forms I-20 in accordance with the July 6 guidance or July 7 FAQs (rescinded on July 14) do not need to reissue Forms I-20, unless there are substantive changes that would trigger a Form I-20 update.

CLARIFYING QUESTIONS FOR FALL 2020 BASED ON MARCH 9 SPRING GUIDANCE BROADCAST

Electronic I-20

If you have been following our blog posts, you must have seen multiples times by now that electronic copy of I-20 can be issued and used during the pandemic. Therefore if your travel endorsement is out of date or if your major has been changed, you can request an electronic copy of I-20. When you print it out, I recommend print it in color as signatures on the Form I-20 should be in blue. If you cannot print it in color, you may print it in black and bring the previous I-20 which has blue signature.

Yes, DSOs may electronically send Forms I-20 to student email addresses listed in SEVIS.

CLARIFYING QUESTIONS FOR FALL 2020 BASED ON MARCH 9 SPRING GUIDANCE BROADCAST

To sum up, F-1 student visa reentry required documents are the form I-20, valid passport and visa. It is also good practice to bring financial documents, enrollment verification and DSO’s name and address. If you familiarize yourself with the most recent ICE guideline, you will be able to answer confidently to any of questions by CBP officials.

The updated list of documents to reenter the U.S. for the year 2021 and F-1 visa-related information can be found on the F-1 visa info page. Work programs for international students can be found on OPT and STEM OPT pages.