{"id":948,"date":"2016-03-11T13:14:36","date_gmt":"2016-03-11T18:14:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/health.uconn.edu\/graduate-school\/?page_id=948"},"modified":"2016-03-11T13:15:07","modified_gmt":"2016-03-11T18:15:07","slug":"pre-arrival-instructions","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/health.uconn.edu\/graduate-school\/admissions\/international-students\/pre-arrival-instructions\/","title":{"rendered":"Pre-Arrival Instructions"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul>\n<li><a href=\"#student\">Pre-arrival Instructions for F-1 Student Visa<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#dependent\">Pre-arrival instructions for F-2 Dependent Visa<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><a name=\"student\"><\/a>Pre-arrival Instructions for F-1 Student Visa<\/h2>\n<p>If you are outside the U.S., the SEVIS I-20 is the necessary document to obtain an F-1 student visa, which permits you to enter the U.S.<\/p>\n<h3>Steps to Follow<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>If you do not have a passport, you must obtain one from the appropriate office of your government in your country. The passport must be valid at least six months into the future at all times.<\/li>\n<li>Carefully read all information on the SEVIS I-20, especially page 2, which explains your legal responsibilities as an F-1 student in the United States.<\/li>\n<li>Sign page 1.<\/li>\n<li>With your passport and SEVIS I-20, go to the nearest U.S. Embassy or consulate in your country. The U.S. Consular Officer will review your papers and, if all is in order, issue an F-1 Student Visa permitting you to enter the U.S. for the purpose of studying at UConn Health.<\/li>\n<li>When you arrive in the U.S., you will be required to present your passport (with a valid F-1 Visa stamp) and your SEVIS I-20 to a U.S. Immigration Inspector at the port of entry.<\/li>\n<li>The Immigration Inspector will review your papers and give you Form I-94 (white card) \u201cArrival and Departure Record.\u201d Fill in the Form I-94 and give it to the Inspector. The Inspector will stamp your SEVIS I-20 Form I-94 and return it to you. Both documents are important because they indicate how long you may legally remain in the U.S. All students should receive D\/S (Duration of Status) meaning you may remain in the U.S. as long as you are pursuing a full course of study and have a valid SEVIS I-20 identification.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>NOTE: Make sure that your SEVIS I-20 end date does not expire during your stay in the United States.<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>Please note<\/b> that all new international students are required by SEVIS to report to the Office of International Programs at the UConn Health <b>no later than ten days after registering<\/b> for classes. This is a Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS) requirement that will ensure notification of your proper enrollment at the University.<\/p>\n<h3>Transfer Student\/New Program<\/h3>\n<p>If you are in the U.S. as an F-1 student completing your degree at another U.S. school and have been made an offer to study at UConn Health, you have to meet the following conditions:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Be a bona fide F-1 non-immigrant student;<\/li>\n<li>Have been pursuing a full course of study at the school you were last authorized to attend immediately preceding the transfer (or the last term preceding a vacation);<\/li>\n<li>Intend to pursue a full course of study at either the school to which you will transfer;<\/li>\n<li>Be financially able to attend the school and complete the degree program to which you intend to transfer.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>In order to receive your SEVIS I-20 from UConn Health, you must do the following:<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Inform the Designated School Official at the school you are currently attending of your intention to transfer or move to UConn Health and complete the &#8216;Recommendation from foreign student advisor&#8221; form;<\/li>\n<li>Your current school must authorize your transfer within SEVIS to UConn Health;<\/li>\n<li>Provide UConn Health with a copy of the following documents: current passport, I94, current visa, and current I-20;<\/li>\n<li>Upon the UConn Health\u2019s receipt of your SEVIS record, the Office of International Programs will issue you a new SEVIS I-20 &#8220;pending transfer.&#8221; The transfer is only completed upon arrival to UConn Health, registering for classes and SEVIS validation. Upon SEVIS validation, you will receive a new I-20, completing the transfer;<\/li>\n<li>Enroll in the new school in the first term after leaving the previous school or the first term after a vacation. A student changing degree programs must register for the new program in the first available term;<\/li>\n<li>Within 15 days of the date of your registration and start of your classes at UConn Health, you must present the SEVIS I-20 (pages 1 and 3) from UConn Health to the Office of International Programs at UConn Health.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Should you have any questions regarding the above information, please contact Ms. Jaishree Duggal in the Office of International Programs at 860-679-4430; email:\u00a0<a href=\"mailto:duggal@uchc.edu\">duggal@uchc.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2><a name=\"dependent\"><\/a>Pre-arrival Instructions for F-2 Dependent Visa<\/h2>\n<p>If you are outside the U.S., the I-20 is the necessary document to obtain an F-1 student visa, which permits you to enter the U.S.<\/p>\n<h3>Steps to Follow<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>If you do not have a passport, you must obtain one from the appropriate office of your government. The passport must be valid at least six months into the future at all times.<\/li>\n<li>Carefully read all information on the Form I-20, especially page 2 which explains your legal responsibilities as an F-2 dependent in the United States.<\/li>\n<li>Your spouse must sign page 1.<\/li>\n<li>With your passport and I-20, marriage certificate and financial support letter, go to the nearest U.S. Embassy or consulate. The U.S. Consular Officer will review your papers and, if all is in order, issue an F-2 Student Visa permitting you to enter the U.S. for the purpose of studying at UConn Health.<\/li>\n<li>When you arrive in the U.S., you will be required to present your passport (with a valid F-2 Visa stamp) and your I-20 to a U.S. Immigration Inspector at the port of entry.<\/li>\n<li>The Immigration Inspector will review your papers and give you Form I-94 (white card) \u201cArrival and Departure Record.\u201d Fill in the Form I-94 and give it to the inspector. The Inspector will stamp your I-20 Form I-94 and return it to you. Both documents are important because they indicate how long you may legally remain in the U.S. All spouses and dependents should receive D\/S (Duration of Status) meaning you may remain in the U.S. as long as your spouse is pursuing a full course of study and have a valid I-20 identification.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>NOTE: Make sure that your I-20 end date does not expire during your stay in the United States.<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b>Please note<\/b> that all new international students are required by SEVIS to report to the Office of International Programs <b>no later than ten days after registering<\/b> for classes. This is a Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS) requirement that will ensure notification of your proper enrollment at the University.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pre-arrival Instructions for F-1 Student Visa Pre-arrival instructions for F-2 Dependent Visa Pre-arrival Instructions for F-1 Student Visa If you are outside the U.S., the SEVIS I-20 is the necessary document to obtain an F-1 student visa, which permits you to enter the U.S. Steps to Follow If you do not have a passport, you [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":0,"parent":808,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-20 23:18:46","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/health.uconn.edu\/graduate-school\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/948"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/health.uconn.edu\/graduate-school\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/health.uconn.edu\/graduate-school\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/health.uconn.edu\/graduate-school\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/39"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/health.uconn.edu\/graduate-school\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=948"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/health.uconn.edu\/graduate-school\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/948\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":949,"href":"https:\/\/health.uconn.edu\/graduate-school\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/948\/revisions\/949"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/health.uconn.edu\/graduate-school\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/808"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/health.uconn.edu\/graduate-school\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=948"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}