Very Important Documents

I-20 Form Passport I-94 Card

Please do not lose any of these documents. They can be hard to replace and can be costly.

Maintaining your immigration status

Maintain a valid passport

Maintain a valid I-20 Form

Maintain full time enrollment

No unauthorized employment

Obtain travel signatures

Report address changes over summer session

Maintain a valid passport

Check to insure that your passport is still valid. Six months prior to your passport expiring, you should

contact your country’s embassy in Washington, DC to start processing an extension. You can find information on your country’s embassy contact information at www.embassy.org

You should not send your original I-94 card or I-20 form when you send your passport for renewal. The cost for replacing a lost I-94 card is $300.

If you have a valid visa in the expiring passport, your country will attach the expired passport to your new passport so you are still able to use the valid visa. They will invalidate all the other pages.

I-94 Arrival/Departure Card

US Visa Stamp

I-20 Form

Maintain full time enrollment

You must be registered as a full time student for every

semester you are enrolled at MHC. -12 credits per semester for most students

-8 credits for Foreign and Language Fellows

If you need to drop below full-time enrollment (generally only allowed for documented medical reasons), you must see Jenny or Donna before dropping below full time. Failure to do this will result in our office having to notify the immigration service that you are out of legal immigration

status.

No unauthorized work

On-Campus: If you are at MHC on the F-1 student visa, for immigration purposes you are allowed to work on campus up to 20 hours a week when school is in session and full time during J Term and the summer. However and very important, you should not work more than 8-10 hours per week if you have a work study award. Working more than 8-10 hours a week will put you over your maximum earnings limit for financial aid and you will be required to stop working on campus. The Village Commons and Stony Brook Childcare are not considered on campus employment.

Off-campus Employment: you can not accept any off-campus employment without permission from the Immigration Service or the McCulloch Center

CPT: http://www.mtholyoke.edu/global/j1_cpt.html OPT: http://www.mtholyoke.edu/global/j1_opt.html

Curricular Practical Training

Enrolled for two full semesters in F-1 status before eligible

Have a declared major Have a job offer for position that is related to your major

field of study Must have faculty mentor Will need to complete independent study in semester

following CPT. Failure to complete the independent study will result in your being ineligible for CPT in the future.

Complete CPT application with faculty mentor Bring completed application and employment offer letter

to the McCulloch Center for an appointment with Jenny CPT permission is given by the McCulloch Center

Optional Practical Training

12 Months for Each Degree Level Must be seeking employment that is related to

your declared major field of study Enrolled for two full semesters in F-1 status

before eligible Options

Before Graduation: Pre-Completion OPT Post-Completion OPT

Apply before date of completion or within 60 days of completion

Applications for OPT are made to the immigration service and have an application fee of $340.

STEM Extension

Travel signatures before leaving the U.S.

You should bring in your I-20 form for a travel signature from either Jenny or Donna at least one week before you will be traveling outside the U.S.

We will send reminder messages about this during peak travel times (December break, spring break, summer break)

On page 3 of the I-20 is states that travel signatures are valid for one year. However, we have found that if you are traveling outside the US more regularly, the immigration officers would like to see signatures for each semester.

Applying for a Social Security Number

Needed for application-Valid passport-I-20 form-I-94 card-Employment letter from on campus employer. Please visit our website for the template of this letter. It

must be on the letterhead of the department you will be working for.

-Support letter from McCulloch Center for Global Initiatives

Representatives from the Social Security Administration will be on

campus on to accept applications for social security numbers. If you

cannot apply during this time, you will need to go to the SS Office in

Holyoke at 200 High Street. There are no buses that go to this office

and you will need to find your own transportation to get there if you

are unable to apply on campus.

Income Tax

Due Date? April 15 or June 15 for

previous year Who Files?

All international students, spouses and children over 14 years regardless of if you have worked or not

How Much? Withholding according

to W-4 Tax treaty benefits Social Security

Withholding

Fines? Underpay, Late filing,

Fraudulent claim Pay Too Much?

Get it back from employer or IRS

Help? IRS Website

www.irs.ustreas.gov Glacier Software Free

to International Students

I-9 Form

W-4 Form

M-4 Form