You must have a valid F or J visa any time you enter the U.S., unless you enter under automatic visa revalidation.
Your valid I-20 or DS-2019 is your certificate of your eligibility for an F or J visa, but it is ultimately the decision of the U.S embassy or consulate to issue you the F or J visa. Even if you have all of the required documents, you may experience issues when you apply for an F or J visa at a U.S. embassy or consulate, such as administrative processing or a visa denial. Read these 10 points to prepare for your visa interview. To plan for applying for a new visa, please check out the student visa calculator which helps estimate how long it will take to process your visa.
There can sometimes be a delay in your F or J visa processing at the U.S. embassy or consulate. This is called administrative processing.
Unfortunately, there is typically nothing ISS or UW-Madison can do to assist during administrative processing. If your visa delay prevents you from entering the U.S. or arriving to UW-Madison before your I-20/DS-2019 start date or the start date of classes for a fall or spring semester, you must contact ISS immediately.
If you are not able to arrive by the start date of classes, you may need to take a leave of absence or request admission for a later semester and re-apply for your F or J visa. You must notify ISS within the first 30 days of the semester. This is the deadline for ISS to report your U.S. address and full-time enrollment in SEVIS.
If you need to request admission for a later semester, you should be admitted and request a change to your I-20/DS-2019 start date within 60 days of the program start date on your initial I-20. If you are granted admission for another semester 60+ days after the program start date on your initial I-20, you must request a new initial attendance I-20/DS-2019 from your admissions office. In this case, you must pay the SEVIS I-901 fee on the new I-20/DS-2019, or request a SEVIS I-901 fee transfer.
If your F or J visa application is denied or refused, you should receive a written reason for the denial from the consular officer. You should contact ISS immediately with a copy of the denial.
The U.S. Department of State has many reasons why your visa may have been denied. The most common reason that we see for an F or J visa application denial is 214(b)- failure to prove non-immigrant intent (you did not sufficiently prove to the officer that you do not intend to immigrate to the U.S.).
Unfortunately, there is typically nothing ISS or UW-Madison can do to assist if your visa is denied. You may be eligible to re-apply for your F or J visa, but you may need an updated I-20 or DS-2019. You should ask the U.S. embassy or consulate if you are eligible to reapply.
If you are not able to arrive by the start date of classes, you may need to take a leave of absence or request admission for a later semester and re-apply for your F or J visa. You must notify ISS within the first 30 days of the semester. This is the deadline for ISS to report your U.S. address and full-time enrollment in SEVIS.
If you need to request admission for a later semester, you should be admitted and request a change to your I-20/DS-2019 start date within 60 days of the program start date on your initial I-20. If you are granted admission for another semester 60+ days after the program start date on your initial I-20, you must request a new initial attendance I-20/DS-2019 from your admissions office. In this case, you must pay the SEVIS I-901 fee on the new I-20/DS-2019, or request a SEVIS I-901 fee transfer.
If your F or J visa is revoked or cancelled, it means that your visa is no longer valid for you to enter the U.S. You should receive an email from the U.S. embassy or consulate that issued you the visa, or other written confirmation from a U.S. government agency, but written confirmation is not always guaranteed. They may email you at the email address you used when you first applied for the visa. You should contact ISS immediately with a copy of the revocation or cancellation notice. ISS does not have a way to confirm whether or not your visa has been revoked or cancelled.
If your F or J visa is revoked or cancelled and you are inside the U.S. otherwise maintaining your status, you may remain in the U.S. If you are outside the U.S. with a revoked or cancelled visa, you must apply for a new F or J visa.
There are many reasons why your visa may have been revoked or cancelled. The most common reason that we see for an F or J visa holder is if you have a legal record in the U.S., especially a DUI (driving under the influence), DWI (driving while intoxicated), or domestic abuse/assault. You do not necessarily have to be arrested and convicted for your visa to be revoked or cancelled.
If you have any drug or alcohol related arrests and/or convictions, you could be referred to a Panel Physician in your home country (or country of visa application) for evaluation during your visa interview. This physician will make a determination if you are an “abuser or addict” and/or if you present a danger to yourself or others. It is possible that you can be required to stay at home for a year or more seeking treatment in order to be considered for another visa stamp.