Visa Types
Student Visas
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Student visa applicants and exchange visitor applicants MUST immediately identify themselves as such to the call center in order to get a timely appointment.
Agents representing J1 programs for students in France (PDF)
Visa Type | Description | Documents to bring |
F | General Education or Language Study | DS-156, DS-158, DS-157 (males between 16 and 45 and all applicants born in/or citizens of Iran, North Korea, Cuba, Sudan, Syria and Libya.) I-20 (issued by the school or the University in the US) SEVIS payment receipt |
M | Nonacademic or vocational study | DS-156, DS-158, DS-157 (males between 16 and 45 and all applicants born in/or citizens of Iran, North Korea, Cuba, Sudan, Syria and Libya.) I-20M (issued by the school or the University in the US) SEVIS payment receipt |
If your primary purpose is academic study, you need an "F" visa. Applicants must demonstrate the financial capacity to cover tuition fees and living expenses for the first twelve months. (Full-time students may seek on-campus employment not to exceed 20 hours per week.)
According to the law, Foreign students are not allowed to attend Public secondary school in F-1 student status unless they reimburse the school authority for an amount equal to the school's per capita cost of education.
To qualify for these visas, you need to overcome the presumption in section 214 (b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) that all visa applicants are intending immigrants. You can overcome this presumption by providing evidence that you have strong, binding ties to your home country (in this case France) and that you have no intention of abandoning your residence here.
If you intend to engage in nonacademic or vocational studies you need a "M" visa. For example, if you wish to study aviation (piloting) or horse breeding, seek an "M" visa. (As no employment is possible while in "M" visa status, applicants must have immediately available the financial resources for the duration of their stay.)
Forms/Procedures: To obtain an exchange or study visa, an exchange or school program in the US must first accept you. You must have the correct form (DS 2019 or I-20), which is generated in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) and supplied by the accepting institution, to confirm that you are enrolled. Applications cannot be processed without the appropriate SEVIS form. In addition, every applicant, including spouses and children planning to accompany, must be properly registered with SEVIS.
Please review the information on SEVIS prior to your interview.
Family: Your spouse and children (under the age of 21) are eligible to receive visas to accompany you to the US. They will receive the same type of visas at the same price, provided that evidence of the relationship is submitted (e.g. birth or marriage certificate). The French status of concubinage is not recognized under US law, so persons in this status are not eligible to receive dependent visas.
You do not need a student visa to attend recreational schools such as tennis or golf camps, or if you are traveling to the U.S. primarily for tourism but will incidentally attend one or more classes.