Maintaining Immigration Status
To maintain your immigration status as an F-1 student, you must:
- Maintain a valid passport.
- Enroll as a full-time student during the academic year (fall and spring semesters) and make normal progress toward your degree. A full course load is 12 credit hours per semester for undergraduates and 8 credit hours per semester for graduate students.
- Update your address, telephone number, and e-mail accounts on FlashLine within 10 days after you move. Your permanent address should be your address outside of the U.S. Your local address is your address in the U.S. You must keep a valid permanent and local address on file. Permanent address=foreign address, local address=U.S. address
- Notify International Student and Scholar Services of changes in major or program (e.g. history to political science or bachelor鈥檚 to master鈥檚 degree).
- Request an extension if your program takes longer than the date indicated on your I-20 or DS-2019. You must apply for a program extension before the end date on your immigration document.
- Maintain health insurance for yourself and any dependents.
- Work only with proper authorization. Contact ISSS before starting employment.
- Have your I-20 or DS-2019 signed by an international student advisor before traveling out of the U.S.