Student & Scholar Services
»Change of Status From H-4 to F-1
A change of status from H-4 to F-1 may be requested when the applicant
can no longer maintain valid H-4 status because the H-1 principal alien
has discontinued employment, or because the H-4 applicant is the child
of an H-1 principal alien and has reached his/her 21st birthday. It may
also be requested if the H-4 has been admitted to an academic degree
program and intends to be a full time student and could benefit academically
from being eligible to accept on-campus employment.
The documents which need to be submitted to USCIS to apply for a change to F-1 status are:
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Form I-539, application for change of non-immigrant status.
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SEVIS I-20.
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Copy of both sides of Form I-94 (Arrival/Departure card in passport.)
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Evidence of financial support. It is necessary to show that the applicant has sufficient funds to support his/her studies for at least the first year and to show the source of income for subsequent years.
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Letter from employer of the H-1 principal alien indicating that the H-1 is currently employed, or, if applicable, the reason and date of departure from employment.
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Check or money order for $300.00, made payable to USCIS.
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Form I-797, approval of H-1 status.
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Passport identity pages of both the H-1 and H-4.
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Visas of both the H-1 and H-4.
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Receipt confirming payment of $100 SEVIS fee.
Please bring all of the above documents to the Office
of International Education.
The International Student Advisor
will review the
application and forward the
request to the INS Texas Service Center for adjudication.
Processing will take a minimum
of three months and students will be notified when their documents
have
been returned.
PLEASE NOTE THAT ON-CAMPUS EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY BEGINS UPON RECEIPT OF THE APPROVED CHANGE OF STATUS. IF YOU LEAVE THE U.S. AND INTEND TO REENTER IN F-1 STATUS, YOU MUST REQUEST AN F-1 VISA AT A U.S. EMBASSY OR CONSULATE BEFORE YOU RETURN.