Required Documents

• Valid passport with an expiration date at least six months beyond your re-entry date
• Valid F-1 or J-1 visa with an expiration date beyond your re-entry date (except citizens of Canada and Bermuda)
• Valid I-20 (F-1) endorsed by an ISS advisor OR Valid DS-2019 (J-1) endorsed by the program sponsor
  • F-1 students in a program of study: endorsement must be within the past 12 months
  • F-1 students on OPT: endorsement must be within the past 6 months
  • J-1 students and scholars: endorsement must be within the past 12 months

 

Additional Documents (If Applicable)

• Proof of full-time enrollment
• Approval of a reduced course load
• Evidence of concurrent enrollment
• Documentation explaining the reason for travel
• Any written communication or emails from professors excusing absences during travel
• OPT EAD and proof of employment

 

Highly Recommended Documents (Not Required)

• SEVIS fee receipt
• Official or unofficial transcript (available from the Registrar’s Office, 322 Student Union)
• Recent tuition receipts
• Proof of U.S. health insurance
• Resume and/or CV
• OSU catalog description of your major
• A list of any publications if you have been published
• Proof of financial support, such as:
  • Personal bank statement
  • Assistantship verification letter (including salary and tuition details)
  • Sponsor’s letter and sponsor’s bank statement

 

Note:

• Students travelling abroad during an active CPT/OPT/STEM period are encouraged to also carry documentation of either approved leave or an official business trip while travelling abroad. In general, work during F-1 employment authorization periods should not be conducted remotely while you are outside of the country.
• If you are missing any of the required documents when you are entering the U.S., you may be allowed to enter the U.S. temporarily. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer may issue you a Form I-515A, “Notice to Student or Exchange Visitor.” If you receive an I-515A you must respond in a timely manner, otherwise your immigration status is at risk of termination.
• S. Customs and Border Protection Officers have the authority to search all electronic devices such as mobile phones and laptops brought into the U.S. at a port of entry, as well as the social media accounts of individuals entering the U.S.

The Department of State has issued instructions that going forward, all nonimmigrant visa applicants should schedule their visa interview at an embassy or consulate within their country of nationality, or, must be able to demonstrate residence in the country which they have applied for the interview if applying outside of their country of nationality.

 

The notification states that rare exceptions may be made for humanitarian or medical emergencies, or for foreign policy reasons. You would need to provide sufficient evidence to the scheduled embassy/consulate to be considered for an exception.

 

If you live in a country that does not have a U.S. embassy / consulate or does not perform nonimmigrant visa issuance the notice has provided a list of specific locations where you should apply, unless you have residence elsewhere:

 

Designated Locations for Nonimmigrant Visa Processing

NATIONAL OF	DESIGNATED LOCATION(S)
Afghanistan	Islamabad
Belarus	Vilnius, Warsaw
Burkina Faso	Lome
Chad	Yaoundé
Cuba	Georgetown
Haiti	Nassau
Iran	Dubai
Libya	Tunis
Niger	Lome
Russia	Astana, Warsaw
Somalia	Nairobi
South Sudan	Nairobi
Sudan	Cairo
Syria	Amman
Ukraine	Krakow, Warsaw
Venezuela	Bogota
Yemen	Riyadh
Zimbabwe	Johannesburg

Not only will you need to provide the documents above you will need to show proof of ties to your home country.  From the Department of State web site: “Student visa applicants must establish to the satisfaction of the consular officer that they have binding ties to a residence in a foreign country which they have no intention of abandoning, and that they will depart the United States when they have completed their studies. It is impossible to specify the exact form the evidence should take since applicants’ circumstances vary greatly”. Examples of such evidence may include: copies of bank statements from a bank in your home country, evidence of ownership of property or residence in your home country, a job offer letter from home, or letters from family.

Consulates and embassies are more frequently conducting background checks on individuals, resulting in possible delays in visa issuance. Background/security checks can be triggered by, but not limited to, arrests in the United States, certain courses that appear on your transcript, or by your field of study. Background/security checks can take a few days up to several months and possibly even longer.

If you plan to travel to a country that is contiguous* to the U.S. (but not Cuba!) and you intend to stay there less than 30 days and will not apply for a new U.S. visa, you may re-enter the U.S. on an expired visa stamp (this regulation is knows as Automatic Visa Revalidation). Please note that citizens of Iran, Syria, Libya, Sudan, North Korea, and Cuba will not be allowed to re-enter the U.S. with an expired U.S. visa stamp, even if the trip is to a contiguous country.

When traveling to a contiguous country, keep your I-94 card with you upon exiting the U.S. Tell the immigration official at the port of exit (border) that you intend to stay outside the U.S. for less than 30 days and that your U.S. visa is expired. Make sure to have your I-20 or DS-2019 signed by an ISS Staff member before you travel and present that document along with your valid passport, I-94, and expired (or current) visa to re-enter the U.S.

* Saint Pierre, Miquelon, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Bermuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Jamaica, The Windward and Leeward Islands, Trinidad, Martinique, or other British, French or Netherlands territories or possessions in, or bordering, the Caribbean Sea.

You do not need special documents to travel from state to state or to U.S. territories, but you must always carry your immigration documents. This is particularly true while travelling through states along the Mexico or Canada borders. You could be stopped by immigration officers at any time and told to produce the following:

• Valid, unexpired passport (expiration date at least six months into the future) or Real ID
• Valid, unexpired I-20(F-1) or DS-2019(J-1)
• Valid I-94 or USCIS I-797 Approval Notice
• U.S. visa (expired or unexpired, unless you are a participant in the Visa Waiver Program)
• Employment Authorization Document (EAD) card and employment verification documents if you are on Optional Practical Training (OPT), the 24-Month OPT Extension, or H-1B Cap Gap Relief.

If you are traveling to Mexico or Canada, or any country that is not your country of citizenship, you may need a visa to enter that country. The following contacts may be helpful to determine if you need a visa to enter another country:

Canada:http://canadaonline.about.com/od/travel/a/usembassy.htm

Mexico:https://www.gob.mx/sre

Foreign consular offices in the United States:http://www.state.gov/s/cpr/rls/fco/

• Traveling as an International Student | Study in the States
• Travel | ICE
• For International Visitors | U.S. Customs and Border Protection
• Locate a Port of Entry | U.S. Customs and Border Protection