F-1 reinstatement

Student Lounge International Students
1

<p>Hi,</p>

<p>I got a problem and concern here...</p>

<p>So I graduated from a community college but failed to transfer my SEVIS record to an university within the 60 days grace period because I waited too long for the admission response from another University.</p>

<p>And then I just fell out from my F-1 Status.</p>

<p>My international advisers in my current University and the previous college had been working out on the reinstatement stuff.</p>

<p>One of the adviser said that the F-1 reinstatement has no guarantee..
I would better to go back my home country and re-enter USA with the new I-20 that my current university issued to me.</p>

<p>So... is there anyone actually succeed in reinstating the F-1 status?</p>

<p>Thanks so much!</p>

2

<p>The advisers at your college would have more experience with the reinstatement process than anyone on this board. The weak point of your application might be a possible lack of evidence that your falling out of status resulted from a situation beyond your control. (“Such circumstances might include serious injury or illness, closure of the institution, a natural disaster, or inadvertence, oversight, or neglect on the part of the DSO.”) Since you were “only” waiting for an admission response, you would have been physically able to leave the country when your current visa was about to expire.</p>

<p>It might take 2-4 months to get a reply to your reinstatement application, according to Penn’s international student website: [Reinstatement</a> To F-1 Student Status](<a href=“http://www.upenn.edu/oip/iss/visa/f1/reinstatement.html]Reinstatement”>http://www.upenn.edu/oip/iss/visa/f1/reinstatement.html) </p>

<p>Whether or not there is an advantage to leaving the country and applying for a new visa at this point is another question. If your request got denied, you would be in the same position you are now - you would have to depart the country and apply for a new visa. I am not aware of any other negative consequences as long as you leave the country promptly. </p>

<p>On the other hand, if you apply for a new visa right now, you would lose your current OPT privileges. Your OPT waiting period would start over with a new visa, which means no internship this upcoming summer.</p>

<p>Before you decide to leave, I would talk to your adviser again. Ask him/her about the risks and benefits of waiting vs leaving. If there are no disadvantages to staying and waiting, you could just as well wait.</p>