- What does SEVP Guidance say about Spring 2021 enrollment requirements for students currently in the United States?
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On July 24, SEVP posted their Clarifying FAQ for Fall 2020 (guidance that still prevails for the Spring 2021 term), outlining the following:
- Students actively enrolled in the U.S. on March 9, 2020 and who have otherwise maintained their lawful status, are permitted to remain in the U.S. while taking their Fall 2020 course load fully online/virtual.*
- Students actively enrolled in the U.S. on March 9, 2020, and who have otherwise maintained their lawful status and who have received a change of education level Form I-20, or who have transferred or will transfer to UMass Lowell for the Spring 2021 semester, are eligible to remain in the U.S. while taking a course load that is fully online/virtual for the fall semester.
* Some exceptions may apply, particularly involving "Change of Status" students.
In general, the key factor to determine whether or not you are eligible to take a fully online course of study, or if you are required to take at least one in-person course, is whether or not you were in the U.S. in “active” F-1/J-1 status, were enrolled on a full-time basis as of March 9, 2020 and have since been maintaining lawful status. If this does not apply to you, you will likely need a course load that is not completely online/virtual for Spring 2021.
- Can I return to or remain in my home country while taking classes for the Spring 2021 semester?
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Yes, you can return to or remain in your home country, taking online/virtual courses for the Spring 2021 semester. ISSO will keep your SEVIS record in Active status, so long as you had met the eligibility criteria allowing participation in a fully remote (online) course load. However, we will notify you, should any further guidance be issued on this item.
- Can I take a leave of absence for the Spring 2021 semester, returning for the Fall 2021 semester?
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Yes, although your failure to enroll in any courses for the Spring 2021 semester will require you to depart the U.S. prior to the start of the Spring 2021 semester (if in the U.S. currently). Thereafter, the ISSO would terminate your F-1/J-1 student status and SEVIS record. It may be possible for the ISSO to request reactivation of your SEVIS record should you wish to return for the Fall 2021 semester, though your options may be limited depending on how long your absence from the U.S. lasts. Please consult with an ISSO official before making plans to take a leave of absence for the fall semester.
- I am outside of the U.S. and plan to travel to Massachusetts, what should I know before traveling?
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Please refer this question.
Continuing/Active students will need to show the following documentation at the Port of Entry:
- Valid Form I-20 with travel signature provided in the last year
- Unexpired foreign passport, expiration date must be at least 6 months in the future
- Valid F-1 visa
- You may also wish to have a transcript reflecting enrollment.
- You may need to show a letter from ISSO attesting that UMass Lowell is not fully online for Spring 2021.
- What does the SEVP guidance allow for Change of Level Students (Bachelor's to Master's, Master's to Ph.D., etc.)?
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If you had previously completed a program of study and are now beginning a new program of study with the same SEVIS ID in the Spring 2021 semester, please note:
- Change of Level Students within the U.S. can be treated as “active” continuing students, permitted to take a fully online course load, so long as they have been maintaining their lawful status in the US and/or were enrolled in “active” SEVIS status as of March 9, 2020.
- Change of Level Students outside of the U.S. can be treated as a continuing student even from overseas, so long as they have been maintaining their lawful status in the US and/or were enrolled in “active” SEVIS status as of March 9, 2020. ISSO will SEVIS register the student, activating their SEVIS record despite the student being overseas. The student can therefore engage in a fully online course load from abroad and will return for the Fall 2021 semester already in “active” SEVIS status. No termination, deferral or data fix is necessary, as they will maintain their active SEVIS record.
- What does the SEVP guidance say about students newly changing status to F-1?
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If you had previously filed a petition to change your status to F-1, the petition was approved and - as of the Spring 2021 semester - you will now be in F-1 status, SEVP guidance would appear to indicate that you CANNOT participate in a fully-online course load. Although you may have been enrolled full-time during the Fall 2020 semester, albeit in another status, because you are now an "initial" F-1 record, SEVP guidance would appear to require at least some in-person component. Please consult your academic department to confirm your Spring 2021 registration is not entirely online.
If your change of status petition to F-1 is still pending and is not approved by the Add/Drop period, you may participate in fully virtual/online courses for Spring 2021.
- What does the SEVP guidance say about transfer-in students?
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Initial transfer students for Spring 2021, who are currently in the US, and who were in active F-1 status on March 9, 2020 and have continued to maintain their status, can be considered a “continuing student”, may engage in virtual/online Spring 2021 enrollment. Upon checking in with ISSO during orientation, ISSO will SEVIS register initial transfer-in students and activate their status with UML. Once SEVIS registered, the student can theoretically come and go from US throughout the semester (as they are an “active” continuing student), but risks are present, particularly as it relates to travel restrictions and CBP questioning the coming and going from the US.
“New” transfer students – those that were not in the US in “active” SEVIS status and enrolled full-time as of March 9, 2020 - outside of the U.S. or already in the U.S. with the intent to start their academic program at UML during the Spring 2021 term cannotenroll in a course of study that is completely online. Again, the key determinant as to whether a student can enroll in a fully online course of study is whether the student was in “active” SEVIS status and enrolled as of March 9, 2020 at UML or elsewhere; if this does not apply to you, a “new” UML transfer student, you must enroll in at least one in-person course during the Spring 2021 term. ISSO will SEVIS register student upon check in with ISSO during orientation, finalizing the transfer and “activating” student’s SEVIS record under UMass Lowell sponsorship.
New transfer students outside of the US and enrolling remotely for the spring cannot have their SEVIS records activated by ISSO as they are outside of the US. ISSO will need to terminate initial “transfer-pending” records, deferring the program start to the Fall 2021 term with a SEVIS data fix prior to their eventual return for the Fall 2021 semester.
Theoretically, the data fix to “reactivate” the SEVIS record for the Fall 2021 term will not have any effect on previous time accrued as it relates to off-campus work eligibility, and the 5-month rule does not appear to apply to transfers.
New transfer students outside of the US and NOT enrolling for the spring are the same situation as above. Theoretically, even without Spring 2021 enrollment, due to COVID we would be able to defer the start of the transfer to Fall 2021 with a data fix, preventing any effect on time accrued for off-campus work benefits. As it is with the above, the 5-month rule also does not apply. Guidance appears to indicate that Spring 2021 enrollment, from abroad, may make the data fix process go smoother, but it is not clear that enrollment is absolutely necessary to process the data fix.