An F-1 student who has overstayed their authorized period of stay or has otherwise failed to maintain F-1 student status may be reinstated to lawful F-1 status at the discretion of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) district director.
The USCIS director may reinstate the student to lawful F-1 status if the student:
- Establishes to the satisfaction of the USCIS director that the violation of status resulted from circumstances beyond the student’s control or that failure to receive reinstatement to lawful F-1 status would result in extreme hardship to the student
- Is currently pursuing, or intending to pursue, a full course of study at the school that issued the form I-20
- Has not engaged in unauthorized employment
- Is not deportable on any ground other than section 241(a)(1)(B) or (c)(i) of the Act {overstaying or failing to maintain status}. {8 CFR 214.2(f)(16)(i)}
Application procedure
- Submit documents to the Office of International Affairs to get Reinstatement I-20 (Refer to Required Documents for 1-20 Issuance)
- You must submit a completed Form I-539 to USCIS with “c” checked and “Reinstatement to student status” written in Part 2, item 1. You must upload the following documents to your online I-539:
- Copy of all three pages of your new form I-20 with the “Reinstatement” annotation in section three. Be sure to hand-sign the I-20 before uploading.
- Processing fee (input your credit card information to the I-539)
- Receipt for paying I-901 Fee if you have been out of status for over five months. You may pay online or view other payment methods.
- Copy of front and back of Form I-94 or printed copy of electronic Form I-94 card
- Copy of admission stamp (if you received one)
- Copies of previously issued Forms I-20 (if available)
- Verification of financial support
- Written statement of explanation addressed to USCIS stating the following:
- Why the student is out of status (specify the violation)
- The reason for the status violation
- The effect on the student of failure to receive reinstatement
- A statement that the student is currently pursuing or intends to pursue a full course of study
For more information, please see the instructions on the Form I-539. Note that you may still choose to file the Form I-539 by mail if you prefer.
Contact Student Legal Services to review your reinstatement application before submission.