Apply for Your Visa

In order to enter the United States as a citizen of a foreign country, you’ll need a valid nonimmigrant or immigrant visa. As a student, this typically will be an F-1 visa, the nonimmigrant student visa class that permits studying a degree at a college or university in the United States.

To apply for your F-1 visa, you’ll need to follow the steps below. You may also want to review the U.S. Department of State’s Student Visa and DS-160: Frequently Asked Questions pages.

STEP 1: Gain Admission to HPU

Your admission letter will come via email and can be found in your HPU Admissions portal (your Panther Page). Be sure to review the portal often for any further steps that you’ll need to complete or information you’ll need to know before coming to HPU.

STEP 2: Print and Sign Your Form I-20: Certificate of Eligibility for Nonimmigrant Student Status

SEVIS, or Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, is the database used to maintain your information regarding your nonimmigrant status. A Designated School Official (DSO) created your SEVIS record, or received and updated your SEIVS record if you transferred from another school, and then issued you a Form I-20: Certificate of Eligibility for Nonimmigrant Student Status, which is a printout of your SEVIS record. Their name and signature can be found on Page 1 of this 3-page document.

Your Form I-20 was included with your letter of acceptance and can be downloaded from your HPU Admissions portal; although, if your information needed to be updated in SEVIS, you may also have received a more up-to-date Form I-20 via email from a DSO.

You’ll need to print this document (all three pages) and sign in ink on Page 1. Please do not sign in pencil. If you’re under the age of 18, your parent or legal guardian must also sign on Page 1.

This is a good time to read all of the information on all three pages, including important federal regulations about the F-1 visa category found on Page 3.

STEP 3: Pay the SEVIS I-901 Fee

Federal regulations require all F, M, and J students to pay the SEVIS I-901 fee before applying for their U.S. student visa. You can pay your SEVIS I-901 fee online at www.FMJfee.com.

IMPORTANT: Verify that your SEVIS ID number on your SEVIS I-901 fee receipt matches your SEVIS ID number on your Form I-20. If it does not, or you encounter other issues paying your fee, please contact SEVP.

You must present the receipt as proof of payment when you apply for your visa.

STEP 4: Complete the Online Form DS-160: Nonimmigrant Visa Application

You’ll use the Online Nonimmigrant Visa Application, Form DS-160, to apply for your F-1 visa. A part of the application will require you to upload your photo. Your photo must be in the format explained in the Photograph Requirements.

When you finish your application, print the application form confirmation page to bring to your interview.

Learn more about completing the DS-160.

STEP 5: Schedule an Interview

In order to make an appointment at your U.S. Embassy or Consulate, you will need to provide your SEVIS ID number.

You should schedule an appointment for your visa interview at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in the country where you live. You may schedule your interview at another U.S. Embassy or Consulate (referred to as applying as a third-country national), but be aware that it may be more difficult to qualify for a visa outside of the country where you live.

Wait times for interview appointments vary by location, season, and visa category, so you should apply for your visa early. Review the estimated wait time for a nonimmigrant visa interview appointment for the U.S. Embassy or Consulate where you will apply.

Notes:

• F-1 student visas for new students can be issued up to 365 days in advance of the start date for a course of study. However, you will not be allowed to enter the United States on your student visa more than 30 days before the start date.
• F-1 student visas for continuing students may be issued at any time, as long as the student is currently enrolled at a SEVP-approved school or institution and in SEVIS. Continuing students may enter the United States at any time before classes start.

STEP 6: Pay the Visa Application Fee

Pay the non-refundable visa application fee before your interview. Review Fees for Visa Services for information about the application fee.

STEP 7: Gather Your Documentation

STEP 8: Attend Your In-Person Interview

To receive a visa, you will have to participate in an in-person interview. During your visa interview, you will need to establish that you meet the requirements under U.S. law to receive an F-1 student visa. Ink-free, digital fingerprint scans may be taken as part of the application process. They are usually taken during your interview, but this varies based on location.

Since you are applying for a nonimmigrant visa, you will need to prove to the consular officer that you do not intend to immigrate to the United States. In other words, you need to show him or her that you have definite plans to return home after college. Review NAFSA’s Ten Points to Remember When Applying for a Student Visa for tips on preparing for the interview.

STEP 9: Check Your Email Regularly

After your visa interview, the consular officer may determine that your application requires further administrative processing and will inform you if this is required.

Information about nonimmigrant visa wait times for interviews and visa processing time frames can be found on U.S. Embassy and Consulate websites worldwide. It should be noted that the estimated processing wait time does not include time required for administrative processing nor the time required to return the passport to you by either courier services or the local mail system.

STEP 10: Await Your F-1 Visa

After the visa is approved, you may need to pay a visa issuance fee (if applicable to your nationality), and make arrangements for the return of the passport and visa to you.

A visa does not guarantee entrance to the United States; it only permits you to arrive and seek permission to enter the country. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer at the U.S. port of entry has the final authority to admit entry into the country. The following link will assist with this process: https://www.ice.gov/sevis/students.

If you F-1 visa stamp is expiring or has expired, you may not need to renew it!

Unlike some visa categories, the F-1 visa stamp is unique in that the expiration date is not used to determine how long you can lawfully stay in the United States. There is a distinction between your F-1 visa stamp and your F-1 visa status. Your F-1 visa stamp (the sticker affixed to your passport, officially known as a visa foil but commonly called visa stamp) is used for admission to the United States and your F-1 visa status determines the duration that you may stay in the United States. If you check your I-94 Admission Record, the “admit until” date should read “D/S” (meaning duration of status) instead of a date. As long as you are in the United States, you have a valid Form I-20 or are in the grace period following your program of study, and have maintained F-1 status, you are considered “in status” and can continue your studies.

If you plan to travel outside of the U.S. and your visa has expired, however, you will need to renew your visa to reenter the U.S. in F-1 status. You cannot renew a visa stamp while in the U.S., so you’ll need to plan your time outside the U.S. to renew the visa at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in your home country.

To renew your F-1 visa, you’ll need to follow the steps below. You may also want to review the U.S. Department of State’s Student Visa and DS-160: Frequently Asked Questions pages.

STEP 1: Complete the Online Form DS-160: Nonimmigrant Visa Application

You’ll use the Online Nonimmigrant Visa Application, Form DS-160, to renew your F-1 visa. A part of the application will require you to upload your photo. Your photo must be in the format explained in the Photograph Requirements.

When you finish your application, print the application form confirmation page to bring to your interview.

After completing the DS-160, you will be instructed to either make an appointment for an interview, or submit your documents to the Embassy under the interview waiver.

Learn more about completing the DS-160.

STEP 2: Schedule an Interview

Many U.S. Embassies and Consulates are waiving the interview requirement for a visa renewal if you meet certain criteria. You’ll be notified about whether you need to schedule an interview or if you qualify for an interview waiver after completing the DS-160.

To schedule an appointment for a visa interview, you’ll do so with the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in the country where you live. You may schedule your interview at another U.S. Embassy or Consulate (referred to as applying as a third-country national), but be aware that it may be more difficult to qualify for a visa outside of the country where you live and visa appointment wait times can be longer for third-country nationals.

Wait times for interview appointments vary by location, season, and visa category, so you should apply for your visa early. Review the estimated wait time for a nonimmigrant visa interview appointment for the U.S. Embassy or Consulate where you will apply.

F-1 student visas for continuing students may be issued at any time, as long as the student is currently enrolled at a SEVP-approved school or institution and in SEVIS. Continuing students may enter the United States at any time before classes start.

STEP 3: Pay the Visa Application Fee

Pay the non-refundable visa application fee before your interview. Review Fees for Visa Services for information about the application fee.

STEP 4: Gather Your Documentation

STEP 5: Submit Your Materials and Attend Your In-Person Interview, if required

Unless you’ve been issued a waiver, you will have to participate in an in-person interview. If you are waived from the interview requirement, you still must be present in the same country as the U.S. Embassy or Consulate to submit your visa application. You cannot mail your application from the U.S.

You will need to establish that you meet the requirements under U.S. law to receive an F-1 student visa. Ink-free, digital fingerprint scans may be taken as part of the application process. They are usually taken during your interview, but this varies based on location.

Since you are applying for a nonimmigrant visa, you will need to prove to the consular officer that you do not intend to immigrate to the United States. In other words, you need to show him or her that you have definite plans to return home after college. Review NAFSA’s Ten Points to Remember When Applying for a Student Visa for tips on preparing for the interview.

STEP 6: Check Your Email Regularly

After submitting your materials, the consular officer may determine that your application requires further administrative processing and will inform you if this is required.

Information about nonimmigrant visa wait times for interviews and visa processing time frames can be found on U.S. Embassy and Consulate websites worldwide. It should be noted that the estimated processing wait time does not include time required for administrative processing nor the time required to return the passport to you by either courier services or the local mail system.

STEP 7: Await Your F-1 Visa

After the visa is approved, you may need to pay a visa issuance fee (if applicable to your nationality), and make arrangements for the return of the passport and visa to you.

A visa does not guarantee entrance to the United States; it only permits you to arrive and seek permission to enter the country. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer at the U.S. port of entry has the final authority to admit entry into the country. The following link will assist with this process: https://www.ice.gov/sevis/students.