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International Student and Scholar Services
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Changing Your Visa to F or J Status

Two Ways to Change Status

If you are currently in the United States in status and want to change to an F or J visa type, you may:

  1. Request your I-20 or DS-2019 and travel outside the country to apply for an F-1/F-2 or J-1/J-2 visa OR
  2. Apply for a Change of Status with USCIS and remain in the country while your application processes.
Details of Each Option
Travel Outside the US
Apply While in the US
  1. Request a Change of Status I-20 (for F visas) or DS-2019 (for J visas) by submitting an Initial I-20 or DS-2019 Request eForm found at https://ist.byu.edu.

  2. After receiving it from our office,

    1. Pay the SEVIS I-901 fee
    2. Submit a DS-160 visa application
    3. Obtain a visa appointment at your home country U.S. embassy or consulate
    4. Travel home and obtain your visa
    5. Re-enter the U.S. with your I-20 or DS-2019, new visa, and passport
  3. Your change of status is immediate upon re-entry to the United States.

  1. Meet following eligibility requirements:

    • You must be in a lawful status at the time of filing your application
    • Your most recent entry was not through the visa waiver program (ESTA)
    • You are not subject to the J-1 two-year home residency requirement
    • You are not currently in the U.S. in M-1 status

  2. Submit an I-539 application to USCIS:

    1. There is a processing fee.
    2. The processing time can take up to 10 months or longer, and can only be expedited via a Request for Premium Processing (I-907), which has an additional filing fee of $1750.
    3. You must be in a lawful non-immigrant visa status at the time of filing your change of status application.
    4. If you will not be in F-1 or J-1 status during the processing time, you will not be eligible for any F-1 or J-1 benefits, such as employment. 
    5. If you leave the United States while your application is pending, USCIS will consider it “abandoned” and will deny it.
    6. USCIS may request additional information which will delay your application. 
    7. If you are in B-1 or B-2 status, you cannot enroll in classes until your application has been approved. 
    8. If you are approved, your visa status will change, but if you plan to travel outside of the United States, you will need to obtain an F-1 visa in your passport in order to return.

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Changing your lawful status requires attention to detail and careful planning. You should thoughtfully consider the Travel and Application options and their related challenges before making your decision to change your visa status.