Office of International Programs

In order to leave the U.S. and re-enter in valid student status, you will need to plan carefully, and have all your papers in order.
A student who is returning to enroll in classes needs the following documents to re-enter the U.S.:

• valid passport
• valid F-1 visa sticker in the passport
• unexpired Form I-20 ID signed by a Designated School Official within the last 12 months.

Valid Passport

A valid passport means that the passport has an expiration date of no less than 6 months in the future. A student who needs to renew a passport should contact the embassy of the home country located in Washington, DC. Renewal procedures and processing times are different for every country. Information about foreign embassies located in Washington, DC can be found at http://www.embassy.org.

Some students who renew passports during their stay in the U.S. will have 2 passports, the old passport containing the valid F-1 visa and the new valid passport which does not contain a visa sticker. USCIS will honor the unexpired F-1 visa sticker in the old passport if both passports are presented at the same time.

Valid Visa

Before you make plans to travel outside of the U.S., you should check to see if the F-1 visa stamp in the passport is still valid for re-entering the United States. If the expiration date has passed, a new visa must be obtained at a U.S. consulate or embassy while out of the U.S. It is not possible to obtain F visas while in the United States. Information about U.S. Embassies is available at http://www.usembassy.gov.

It is best to apply for a new F-1 visa sticker in the student's home country. Obtaining a new visa in a third country can be difficult, because the U.S. embassy performs a series of background checks on all visa applicants. Student visas are issued in Canada and Mexico by appointment only. Appointments can be made with the U.S. embassies in Canada and Mexico by visiting the following internet site: https://ais.usvisa-info.com/en-CA/niv.

Form I-20 or DS-2019 with travel authorization (travel signature)

All F/J students must have a signature from ISSSO on their I-20/DS-2019 before they leave the U.S. This signature must be no older than 12 months from the date you reenter the U.S. To obtain the required signature on your I-20 or DS-2019, schedule an appointment with a staff member online at (Link Coming Soon).