International Travel
An international student who travels abroad and then returns to the United States to continue their coursework needs the following documents to re-enter the United States:
- Valid passport
- Valid F-1 visa sticker in the passport
- Unexpired I-20 or DS-2019 with an up-do-date signature from the Designated School Official (DSO)
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. Find information about foreign embassies located in Washington, DC.
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 United States, you should check to see if the F-1 visa stamp in your passport is still valid for re-entering the United States. If the expiration date has passed, a new visa must be obtained at a United States consulate or embassy while outside of the United States. It is not possible to obtain F visas while in the United States.
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 Unites States embassy performs a series of background checks on all visa applicants. Student visas are issued in Canada and Mexico by appointment only. You can make an appointments with the United States embassies in Canada and Mexico online.
I-20 or DS-2019 with Travel Authorization
All F students must have a signature from the Director of International Programs or the Assistant Director of Admissions on their I-20 before they leave the United States.
J students should contact their sponsoring agency to make certain that the travel signature on their DS-2019 is valid for their re-entry into the United States.
Travel signatures are valid for travel for re-entry for one year.
