How to apply for an F-1 visa

If you want to study in the United States, you need to get a student visa. The primary student visa required to study in the US is called F-1 visa.

Here are the steps to apply for an F-1 visa.

Apply for admission and get accepted

In order to apply for an F-1 visa, you must first apply for admission in an SEVP approved school and get accepted by the school. Secondly, you need to pay your Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) fees and get your Form I-20. When the school accepts you, you must pay the SEVIS I-901 fee before being enrolled.

Form I-20

In the next step, the school will send you a Form I-20, which you must take to your F-1 visa interview. If you are married and/or have children who you want to reside with you in the US during your study, they will need separate Form I-20s. However, they will not be required to get enrolled in the SEVIS.

Apply for the F-1 visa

After getting the Form I-20, you must apply for the F-1 visa at the US embassy or consulate. A non-refundable visa application fee will have to be paid as well. You can apply online for the F-1 visa. When applying online, be sure to complete and print the Form DS-160 because you have to take it to your visa interview.

Schedule the visa interview

Now that you have applied for the F-1 visa, you have to schedule and get ready for the interview, which will be conducted at the US embassy or consulate. The wait time can be different depending on your country, so be sure to apply for the visa early. However, you would not be allowed to enter the US with an F-1 visa thirty days prior to the start of your study.

Attend the visa interview

You must make sure to take along each and every document required for the interview. During the interview, the consular officer would establish whether you are eligible to get an F-1 student visa.

If you qualify for the visa, you would be required to pay a visa issuance fee. The consular officer would keep your passport in order to give you the visa. You will get the passport along with the F-1 visa in the mail, or you would be required to personally pick it up.

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