Students may "fall out of status" - that is, be considered to have lost the right to their F or M visas. If that happens, sometimes a student can be reinstated to status. However, it is up to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to decide whether to do so. No student has a right to be reinstated.

Why Might I Lose Status?

A student could lose status for several reasons. Some are that the student:

  • Stops taking a full course load: F-1 students are allowed one annual vacation if the student is eligible for and intends to return for the next semester. If the school uses quarters or trimesters instead of semesters, an F-1 student who has completed an academic year can take one quarter or trimester off and keep status.
  • Starts a new program without getting permission to transfer or an extension to start a new one (for example, graduate school after finishing college). A transferring F-1 student gets an I-20 from the new school and then tells the Designated School Official (DSO) at the old one that he plans to transfer. The student must enroll in the new school in the next term (or after the annual vacation). The student must give the new DSO the new I-20 part A-B and the I-20 ID within 15 days of starting classes. An M-1 student needs USCIS permission to transfer.
  • Works without permission
  • Is arrested or convicted for certain crimes

How Long Does a Student Have to Correct the Problem?

The sooner the better, but there is no specific time set out. Still, anyone here and out of status is piling up "unlawful presence." With 180 days of that, a person will have a very hard time returning to the United States within three years after leaving. If he has more than a year of it, he will have to stay out of the United States for ten years.

How Does a Student Get Reinstated?

The student will need to show the government that he lost status because of something beyond his control or that not reinstating him would cause extreme hardship. The student must also show:

  • That he now is in or intends to participate in a full course of study
  • That he has not worked off-campus without authorization or continued to work on-campus after his authorized period to stay in the United States expired
  • That there is no other reason to expel him from the United States

The student then must submit a written request to the USCIS district office for where he is. Include a sworn statement explaining what happened and why he deserves reinstatement. With that statement, the student must send documents that prove what is in it. Include the I-20 from the school the student will attend. For an F-1, the student should submit a Form I-539 and the necessary fee. If USCIS denies the request, the student can't appeal. He must leave or file a motion for reconsideration or reopening immediately, or ask USCIS for more time to leave. But he must act quickly.

What about Students Who Are Out of the United States for a Long Time?

If a student has been away from the United States for less than five months, he can get back in if he shows an I-20 form that has been properly endorsed by the Designated School Official, assuming there is no "substantive" change in the information on it. If there has been such a change, the student must get a new I-20 from the DSO.

Questions for Your Attorney

  • What kind of hardship is hard enough?
  • What do I do if I lose and can't get reinstated?
  • What will happen if I don't do anything, just stay in the country and don't ask for reinstatement?