DS-160, I-20, Embassy appointment brouhaha

[Calorific]

Hello there,

 

I have been trying to secure my I-20 from my uni for a while now.

 

The school has so far refused to issue the I-20 because my wife and child's passports aren't ready yet (I intend to travel with them). I expect the t passports to be out before the end of this week though.

 

The next available slot for appointment at the US embassy in my country for F-1 students is July 16 as of today when I checked online and I am a bit worried that it might be too late by the time the I-20 arrives and I start processing my embassy appointment (my RA offer would be void if I can't attend orientation on Aug 13). School officially resumes on Aug 25.

 

In order to complete the DS-160 form, I would need the SEVIS-ID which I assume comes with the I-20. My question: do you think it would be appropriate to ask for the I-20 from the school at this point before the I-20 actually arrives?

 

I am just trying to see if I could save time one way or another.

 

Thank you!

[fuzzylogician]

You can ask them to tell you what the SEVIS number is even before they send you the I-20, assuming they've already issued it and are just waiting for information about your wife and child's passports to complete the process. It's entirely possible that you already have an assigned SEVIS number. If not, I don't see what else you can do but wait, since they've already refused to send you your I-20 independently of your family's I-20s. Again, once you've submitted all the information they require, you can ask for the number before you get the actual document in the mail. If you submit the information this week and are able to get an answer from them next week, hopefully that won't hold you back too much.

[Calorific]

Thanks for the useful advice, Mister Fuzzy! :-)

[samiam]

In my country, you can get an 'emergency appointment' at the US Consulate if you meet certain criteria, and one of the options is that you are an F1 student who only just got their I20 issued and whose program is about to start. Might be worth looking into. 

[Calorific]

This is just a new development:

 

So I booked my appointment ahead of the arrival of the I-20 haven received the I-20 SEVIS ID in a separate secured email last week.

 

The max length of time for completing the PhD on the I-20 that was scanned to me is  72 months.

 

Meanwhile, on my DS 160, I had fixed 5 years (= 60 months) as my expected length of stay in the US.

 

Haven booked my appointment already, I hope that this would not be misconstrued by the consular officer on the date of the interview and used as a reason against me?

[ahlatsiawa]

Sometimes the school adds an additional 6-12 months on the I-20 in case, for any reason, the student is not able to complete his/her studies in the expected time span. This is perfectly fine and should not be a reason for concern. Does your admission letter or the program's webpage indicate five years as the expected time period? If so, please carry it with you to show the officer in the unlikely event they decide to ask you about it. 

[Calorific]

My admission letter says nothing about the length of my program.

[ahlatsiawa]

Still it won't cause any problems in my opinion. If you absolutely don't want to take any risk, there is always the option of submitting another DS160 and updating the reference number on your visa interview application page. But I would advise against it.

[fuzzylogician]

Some countries have agreements with the US that don't allow visas to be issued for more than 5 years. I think this is pretty common. So even if your program is longer, you'll need to get a new visa after 5 years. It sounds like there should be no problem with your documents.

[TakeruK]

Definitely not an issue at all, as fuzzy and ahlatsiawa says. 

 

For comparison, many of my colleagues have visas valid for only 1 year!

[ahlatsiawa]

TakeruK if you wouldn't mind me asking, are the friends that you have mentioned in your post on F/J visas? If so then that is surprising news for me.

[fuzzylogician]

TakeruK if you wouldn't mind me asking, are the friends that you have mentioned in your post on F/J visas? If so then that is surprising news for me.

 

It depends on the country of origin and what kind of reciprocity agreements those countries have with the US. For example, I have friends from Russia, both on F and on J, who only get a visa for one year at a time. They need to renew it basically every time they go home. It's very frustrating for them, and not cheap at all. 

[ahlatsiawa]

Wow that must suck. I'm glad I won't have to go through that every year.

[Calorific]

Thank you, guys!

[Calorific]

Hello there, I will be heading for the embassy in less than a week. I am using my brother's bank statement as cover for supporting my wife and little man when I am in the US. Do you think I need a reference letter from the bank in addition to the bank statement of my brother that I have to present to the interviewing officer at the embassy? Secondly, when in the US, do you think I can get by with my family with a meager RA funding of about $2000/month considering the costs of medical insurance and living (estimated) of approx. $8500 per annum without other substantial financial support? Are there ways of getting around this when one's spouse will be on an F-2 visa? My school says they do not issue J-1 visas except one gets a funding from their home country.

[ahlatsiawa]

You do not need a letter from the bank but I would advise getting a signed letter from your brother stating that he is willing to sponsor you. F1 visas allow you to work 20hr/week on campus and most universities have a paying rate higher than the minimum wage so you can expect to make anywhere from $700-$1000 if you decide to take that route; enough to cover 1BR rents in most cities. Spouses on F2 visas are not allowed to work but one way to get around this that comes to mind is working from home on the computer. I am not familiar with the laws that govern online freelancing though, so please look into them before going for it.

Edited June 18, 2014 by ahlatsiawa

[fuzzylogician]

Hello there, I will be heading for the embassy in less than a week. I am using my brother's bank statement as cover for supporting my wife and little man when I am in the US. Do you think I need a reference letter from the bank in addition to the bank statement of my brother that I have to present to the interviewing officer at the embassy? Secondly, when in the US, do you think I can get by with my family with a meager RA funding of about $2000/month considering the costs of medical insurance and living (estimated) of approx. $8500 per annum without other substantial financial support? Are there ways of getting around this when one's spouse will be on an F-2 visa? My school says they do not issue J-1 visas except one gets a funding from their home country.

 

1. You don't need a letter from the bank (what would it say?), assuming you don't have enough money there to show that you can support yourself, I'm not sure it'll help. Getting a letter from your brother stating that he will help you might be a good idea. 

 

2. It really depends on the cost of living where you'll be. In some places you can get an apartment and cover your living expenses for $2000, at others it'll barely be enough to cover rent. Also, is $2000 the amount you'll be paid before taxes are taken out? If so, your salary will actually be lower and that's important to keep in mind. 

 

3. Unfortunately your spouse can't work at all. If your school won't issue you a J-1 visa, that's just how it has to be.

 

 

Spouses on F2 visas are not allowed to work but one way to get around this that comes to mind is working from home on the computer. I am not familiar with the laws that govern online freelancing though, so please look into them before going for it.

 

This is illegal! People on F-2 status are not allowed to work in the US, and it doesn't matter at all where they get paid. 

 

 

F1 visas allow you to work 20hr/week on campus and most universities have a paying rate higher than the minimum wage so you can expect to make anywhere from $700-$1000 if you decide to take that route; enough to cover 1BR rents in most cities.

 

Note: Calorific says they will have RA funding. This may mean that they are already considered to be working the allowed amount of hours a month and therefore cannot take on another job. Calorific -- you should find out the source of your funding and whether you're considered to be employed or are getting a fellowship. Depending on this status you may or may not be able to take an additional on-campus job. Even if you can work, I'd caution against relying on this option too much because no one guarantees that you'll have a steady job for the entire time you'll be in your program nor that you'll be able to work for the full 20 hours you'd like. There aren't that many campus jobs. On the other hand, note that you'll be able to work up to 40 hours a week during the summer break, and I believe that after the first year you should be able to ask for permission to work off campus, as long as the job is related to your field.

*** Whatever you do, consult with your international students office before starting any kind of job in the US; you need to be sure you are not violating the law *** 

[TakeruK]

$2000 per month might be enough, depending on where you are going to be living. In my current location, one bedroom apartments range from $1000-$1600 per month, so $2000 is definitely not enough here! 

 

To help reduce costs, you could look to see if your school subsidizes any costs of having dependents. My school will grant up to $100 per person per month (i.e. $1200/year) to help offset health insurance costs for your spouse and your children. Generally, students with children have much higher expenses and some schools have extra money to help these students out. They usually do not widely advertise them to prevent people taking advantage of it. But if you arrive and find that you are struggling to pay for everything, you can perhaps look to see if these resources exist. I know my school has them but I am not sure if this is common or if I am just really lucky that I chose a supportive school.

 

As for working on campus, the F-1 visa's 20hr/week limit includes the work you would be performing as an RA. So if your RAship is for 10 hours/week, then you would be able to find additional employment on campus for the remaining 10hr/week. But if your RAship is 20 hours/week, then you will have already reached your limit. Note that the 20hr/week limit is only for the months where school is in session (i.e. classes). During the summer, you can work full time on campus, so that might help. However, all of this assumes that your department also is okay with you working somewhere else on campus.

 

Also, most on-campus jobs are really aimed at undergraduates, not grad students and the hours are not likely to be regular (e.g. one job might be giving campus tours). The on-campus allowance for grad students is meant to cover your RA and TA work.

 

For your wife, F-2 status means she cannot work or earn any income at all. So, ahlatsiawa's suggestion of online freelancing work is likely to be against F-2 regulations. I'm not going to comment on how likely someone can be caught with unlawful employment, but I don't think it is worth the risk!!

 

In every case regarding employment, I would suggest you check with the international student program office on campus before taking on any work other than your RA/TA. 

 

 

Edit: It seems like fuzzy has beaten me to the punch!  

 

I also forgot to add--there are special circumstances where you might be granted a special work permit that allows you to work off campus due to unforeseen economic hardship. You would have to talk to your international student office to get information on how to apply for this, but I don't think this is likely to be granted as a way to supplement your current income. However, if something happens and you suddenly have much greater expenses, don't forget about this option.

Edited June 18, 2014 by TakeruK

[fuzzylogician]

Edit: It seems like fuzzy has beaten me to the punch!

 

Great minds think alike

[Calorific]

Ahlatsiawa, thanks! I will get the signed letter from my brother. Fuzzylogician, houses in my prospective school area are in the range of $600 to $800/month. I figure the stipend would be enough for a single person. What I am not sure about is if the amount would be enough for three of us. I could take a study leave with pay from my current employer and I would be earning an extra $750 per month. This comes with the caveat that I would have to return to my country and spend twice the number of years I spend in pursuing my PhD (very wicked concentration of draconianism, I know). I've been trying to run from this deal all along but it seems to be my best bet so far except I want to struggle when I arrive in the US. Also, my RA funding excludes me from any sort of other campus or off-campus work and so does the faculty scholarship I would be a beneficiary of. And thank you, TakeruK for your advice too. They are very helpful.

[ahlatsiawa]

Have you considered taking out a student loan?

[fuzzylogician]

Ahlatsiawa, thanks! I will get the signed letter from my brother. Fuzzylogician, houses in my prospective school area are in the range of $600 to $800/month. I figure the stipend would be enough for a single person. What I am not sure about is if the amount would be enough for three of us. I could take a study leave with pay from my current employer and I would be earning an extra $750 per month. This comes with the caveat that I would have to return to my country and spend twice the number of years I spend in pursuing my PhD (very wicked concentration of draconianism, I know). I've been trying to run from this deal all along but it seems to be my best bet so far except I want to struggle when I arrive in the US. Also, my RA funding excludes me from any sort of other campus or off-campus work and so does the faculty scholarship I would be a beneficiary of. And thank you, TakeruK for your advice too. They are very helpful.

 

Well then assuming you find a place for $600 and you pay an additional $700 in health insurance fees, you will have $700 left over for all your other expenses - transportation, utilities, groceries, clothes, any other expenses (medical bills, cell phone, internet, eating out, etc.). There are threads you can find on the board about groceries and living expenses. My guess is it's doable but you'll have to live very(!) frugally. You won't be able to afford childcare so your spouse will have to stay home with your child. You'll have to be careful with grocery shopping and look out for discounts and sales, and you'll have to cook and eat at home almost exclusively. You probably won't be able to afford to travel home during the summer breaks, either. Note that my estimates are based on the assumption that you will have a steady income all 12 months of the year. Things would be greatly complicated if your salary is only for 9 months and you're not paid for three months of the year--in that case, I honestly don't think you'll make enough to support your family. I'm also ignoring taxes but, again, if the salary you mentioned is pre-tax, that too needs to be factored in. Overall, it'd be very difficult to maintain such a frugal lifestyle, but it's doable--especially if you and your spouse view it as an investment in your future and are willing to sacrifice for a better life later on. It'd be much easier if you got a loan or if you were able to secure additional summer employment.

 

Are there other graduate students with families in your program? I think the best thing you can do is get in touch with them to get some information about their expenses and how they are handling them. That will be much more informative than our guesses can be.

[Calorific]

Visa approved. Thanks guys!

[ahlatsiawa]

Wooho congrats! Way to go!