New U.S. Visa Policy Affects International Students
Wednesday | August 29, 2018 | by Melissa Mace

F-1 student visa
Over a million international students will start or continue studies in the U.S. this year. If you are one of these students, it is important to understand the nonimmigrant visa policies and procedures as they continue to change. Recently, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), a component of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, issued a revision to a policy that could impact you. Keep reading to see what you need to know about this policy.

What Is the New Visa Policy?
Updates to regulation 8 CFR 103.2(b)( will take effect on September 11, 2018, but what exactly is this regulation? In short, this is the regulation that determines the criteria for USCIS to issue a Request for Evidence (RFE) or Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID) if you do not provide all the necessary visa information up front. In addition, the new policy memo gives the USCIS adjudicator “full discretion to deny applications, petitions, or requests” without requesting additional evidence.

This means that it is important to get your visa application right the first time, and to include all of the necessary information and documents upon filing.

How Will the New Visa Policy Affect International Students?
For F-1 student visa applicants and visa holders, the policy could have an impact at the initial visa interview. You could also be affected you if you are applying for:

Work authorization based on economic hardship: If you are experiencing extreme economic hardship, you may apply to USCIS for authorization to work off campus.
Reinstatement: If you allow your F-1 visa to become out-of-status, then you must apply for reinstatement to regain valid status.
What Can International Students Do to Be Prepared for This New Policy?
Being prepared and diligent is the key to successfully obtaining and maintaining your visa. At the initial visa interview, the officer will consider the following points to determine visa approval:

Do you have an original, signed Form I-20 issued by an educational institution in the United States?
The Form I-20 will be mailed to you by the college or university you plan to attend.
Are you able to demonstrate that you have enough funds to study in the United States?
Have your bank statements or bank letter and any forms required by the educational institution with you to prove you have sufficient funds to study in the U.S.
Do you know why you want to study in the U.S. and why you want to study at the university you selected?
Come to your interview prepared to explain the reasons or motivation behind why you decided to study in the U.S.
Do you have ties to your home country that make the officer confident you will return after you complete your education?
Providing evidence of your intention to return home is very important. For example, do you own land? Will you take over a family business? Do you have family who count on you to return?
For current F-1 visa holders who find it necessary to apply for a hardship waiver to work off campus, visa reinstatement, or anything else that requires adjudication, completing the application in full and providing all the necessary evidence at the time of application will be key to a successful application. The policy revision clearly states the adjudicator is not required to issue an RFE and can deny your application for incomplete information. Do not let that happen to you!

Final Tips
Although it is important to stay up-to-date on the changing U.S. immigration policies, do not let this modified policy discourage you. On the contrary, the fact that over one million international students are already studying in the U.S. should inspire you!

If you have questions about this new policy, reach out to the U.S. university or college where you intend to study. For additional information, you can visit the following U.S. government websites, which are valuable resources for international students looking to study abroad in the U.S:

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I forgot to add that I waited exactly one whole year to be assigned a supervisor at the Ibadan study centre which never happened & I had to transfer to Osogbo study centre where I was assigned supervisor within two weeks.

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Hmmmm. Exactly what happened to me. I submitted my completed MSc project on 08/April/2015 after being graded. My centre forwarded d project & result to HQ on 09/April/2015. When I didn't see my name in graduating list in January 2016, I went 2 HQ to know why. To my dismay, I was told they couldn't see my project. I resubmitted another copy wit the result to d HQ. To my surprise again, d project result was not released with no reason.

I was asked to resubmit the 3rd copies two months ago. Just praying everything is sorted out b4 next convocation. I do not owe a kobo neither do I hv outstanding course to register. I have completed my 41 credit units (excluding 6 units for project) since December 2013. NOUN inefficiency is at the highest level in the recent time.

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timmyoj:
Quite a pathetic situation that NOUN website could be down for so long. Still wondering why any thing that has to do with the government in Nigeria is always inefficient and handled carelessly by the staff. From communications to electricity, to security, to healthcare to education, to anything government!
This is why am often in support of privatization. Could NOUN be down for so long if it were privately managed with the owners loosing money per hour of the down-time? Just wondering!

And they will say 'Government property is nobody's property'! same adage that will never allow Nigeria to progress and why many serious-minded Nigerians who can find their way simply leave the country. Same selfishness and greed that runs in the veins of the typical Nigerian politician, where the National pledge means absolutely nothing to them (that's if they even know what the pledge is).

As a 'frustrated' M.Sc Info Tech student of NOUN since 2013, I cant but feel bad over the many inefficiencies I noticed with NOUN system.
First the careless attitude of the staff at the centres, and then recounting my experience after investing as much as I could and studying as hard as I could in a bid to finish up the programme as soon as possible; only to be given one carry over in a core course; and after battling with project work (project fees of 40k to NOUN, and literally begging the supervisor to supervise my work and to collect 20k instead of the 50k he asked as he said NOUN owes him for many months so the students must pay the cost, 60k total, all for doing 'nothing') yet after all the stress, NOUN still cant produce my project result after almost 2 years and after re-submitting the project work 3 good times at my own expense, the first 2 the HQ said they never got or cant find while my SC says they sent them, the last one I submitted at the HQ in Lagos months ago which am hoping will work out finally.

And after 'painfully' paying NOUN almost 30k just for me to resit the 1 carryover paper, I cant access NOUN website nor the TMA portal.
Cant say more, can only wish I never wasted my time and finances to run my M.Sc programme at NOUN.

Indeed! The inefficiency in the Nigeria government systems is quite appalling, NOUN is only one of them, only God can help this country cause the change everyone is clamouring for still seems way too far away as long as this mindset of greed and selfishness remains in the Nigeria system. What poverty has done to Nigeria and Nigerians though!

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