Immigration Information
> Immigration Regulations F-1

 How to Maintain your Legal Status in the United States
 Penalty for Non-compliance with F-1 Regulation
 Admission
 Transfer
 Arrival/Departure
 Re-entry
 Extension of Stay
 On-Campus Employment
 Off-Campus Employment
 Summer Employment Policy

How to Maintain your Legal Status in the United States

To maintain your nonimmigrant student status, you must be enrolled as a full-time student at the school you are authorized to attend. You may engage in off-campus employment only when you have received permission to work. At St. Thomas, graduate students are required to register for a minimum of six credits during fall and spring semesters. For undergraduates, 12 credits is the minimum for each semester.

Summer is an optional term except for new international students.  New F-1 and J-1 visa GRADUATE students who begin their studies at St. Thomas in the summer must enroll in at least three credit hours to maintain their full-time student status.New F-1 and J-1 visa UNDERGRADUATE students who begin their studies in the summer must enroll in at least six credit hours. 

Penalty for Non-compliance with F-1 Regulations

Failure to comply with these regulations will result in the loss of your student status and subject you to deportation.

Admission

A nonimmigrant student may be admitted for duration of status. This means that you are authorized to stay in the United States for the entire length of time during which you are enrolled as a full-time student in an education program and any period of authorized practical training, plus sixty days. While in the United States, you must maintain a valid foreign passport unless you are exempt from passport requirements.

You may continue from one education level to another, such as progressing from high school to a bachelor’s program or a bachelor’s program to a master’s program, etc., simply by invoking the procedures for school transfers.

Transfer

A nonimmigrant student is permitted to transfer to a different school provided the transfer procedure is followed. To transfer schools, you should first notify the school you are attending of the intent to transfer, then obtain a Form I-20 A-B from the school you intend to attend. Transfer will be effected only if you return the Form I-20 A-B to the designated school official within 15 days of beginning attendance at the new school. The designated school official will then report the transfer to the Immigration and Naturalization Service. 

Arrival/Departure

When you leave the United States, you must surrender your Form I-94 Departure record. Please see the back side of Form I-94 for detailed instructions. You do note have to turn in the I-94 if you are visiting Canada, Mexico, or adjacent islands other than Cuba for less than 30 days. 

Re-entry

A nonimmigrant student may be re-admitted after a temporary absence of five months or less from the United States, if the student is otherwise admissible. You may be readmitted by presenting a valid foreign passport, a valid visa, and either a new Form I-20 A-B or a page 4 of the Form I-20 A-B (the I-20 ID Copy) properly endorsed by the foreign student advisor for re-entry if the information on the I-20 form is current.

You must demonstrate that you are financially able to support yourself for the entire period of stay in the United States while pursuing a full course of study. You may be required to present documentary evidence of means of support at the US Embassy or at the port of entry. 

Extension of Stay

If you cannot complete the educational program after having been in student status for longer than the anticipated length of the program plus a grace period of a single educational level, or for more than eight consecutive years, you must apply for extension of stay. An application for extension of stay on a Form I-538 should be filed with the Immigration and Naturalization Services district office having jurisdiction over your school at least 15 days but no more than 60 days before the expiration of your authorized stay. 

On-Campus Employment

To be eligible for any type of employment you must maintain continuous and lawful F-1 status. Students in F-1 status may begin working on campus once they have completed a document check with an advisor at OISS. This is generally done as part of international student orientation. 

All students have the opportunity to seek employment on campus even if student employment is not awarded as part of the financial aid package. A wide variety of campus jobs are available to students who attend St. Thomas. For example, students may work as office support staff, food service employees, science lab assistants, residence hall desk attendants, and computer help desk staff. Student employment can be a wonderful experience and give valuable insights into various career areas and the American professional experience. 

Income from a campus job can help students pay for educational and personal expenses. Student pay rates vary depending on the job responsibilities, but start at $7.00/hour. A student who works 10 hours per week at a rate of $7.00/hr for the entire school year can earn almost $2,300. Students can receive paychecks or have their earnings applied toward the tuition bill. Earnings from student employment are taxable income, but are not subject to the FICA tax, as long as the student is enrolled on a half-time basis or more.

Please be aware that student employment is not guaranteed. Students must obtain their own positions on campus. Available positions are posted on the Human Resources web site www.hr.stthomas.edu. Most positions are posted at the beginning of the school year. 

To be eligible for any type of employment international students must maintain continuous and lawful F-1 status. Students in F-1 status may begin working on campus once they have completed a document check with an advisor at OISS. This is generally done as part of the international student orientation. On-campus employment is limited to 20 hours per week during fall and spring semesters. During school vacations, students may work full-time (up to 40 hours per week). School vacations include: Thanksgiving Break, Winter Break, January Term, Spring Break, and summer vacation.

Off-Campus Employment

Definition of Off-Campus Employment:
The U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) defines employment as the rendering of services on either a part-time basis for compensation (financial or otherwise). Students in F-1 status may be authorized for off-campus employment for professional employment in their field of study (Practical Training) or in cases of severe economic hardship due to unforeseen circumstances (Off-Campus Employment based on Severe Economic Hardship).

Eligibility and Application Procedures
To be eligible for any type of off-campus employment you must maintain continuous and lawful F-1 status. In addition, you must be a full-time student for nine months before you are eligible to apply for any type of off-campus work permission.

You can only be authorized to work off-campus by filling the proper INS application forms with the assistance an advisor in the Office of International Student Services. You may not work off-campus without authorization.

NOTE:  It is not sufficient for your professor or academic advisor to tell you that you can work; that is only first step in the process and does not constitute employment authorization.

Practical Training
What Employers Should Know About Hiring International Students (pdf file)

 

Summer Employment Policy

Only UST students are eligible for summer student employment positions. Students eligible for summer '06 student employment positions include: 

• current UST students
• students graduating in May with OPT work authorization hired for UST staff positions directly related to their degree program.  Students graduating on May 20, 2006 will not be allowed to work in a UST student employment position after May 21, 2006.
• continuing another degree program at St. Thomas
• incoming students for Fall '06