Keeping your F-1 status: the basics

Step 1 — Make your DSO your first contact

Your DSO works at your school and uses SEVIS, the government’s student database, to report your address, courses, enrollment and employment (Study in the States — About SEVIS). Study in the States, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) website for students, says your DSO should be the first person you talk to about the legal requirements of your stay (Study in the States — Maintaining Status).

Talk to your DSO before you (Study in the States — Maintaining Status):

• change your major, program, degree or education level;
• transfer, take a leave of absence or take a break from school;
• travel outside the U.S.;
• move to a new address;
• ask for more time to finish your program.

If your DSO can’t help, or you’d rather ask someone else, you can email the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) at [email protected] (Study in the States — Maintaining Status). Tip: keep your DSO’s important answers in writing.

Step 2 — Study full time, every term

A full course of study is the number of credit or clock hours you must take each term, and it depends on your status and your program (Study in the States — Fall Refresher). For example, F-1 undergraduates at a college or university must take at least 12 credit hours per term (Study in the States — Full Course of Study).

Online classes count only a little. For an F-1 student, only one class or three credits per term taken online can count toward a full course of study, and none can count for English language training students (Study in the States — Full Course of Study).

Reduced course load (RCL). You may drop below full time only after your DSO authorizes it; approval from your academic advisor isn’t enough (Study in the States — Fall Refresher). For F students, DSOs can approve an RCL only for listed reasons, such as an illness or medical condition (up to 12 months, with medical documentation), certain initial academic difficulties, or a final term that needs fewer courses (Study in the States — Fall Refresher). When the RCL period ends, you must return to full time (Study in the States — Fall Refresher).

If school becomes too difficult, speak with your DSO right away (Study in the States — Maintaining Status).

Step 3 — Keep your passport and Form I-20 valid

• Passport. SEVP advises keeping it current at all times, and many countries let you renew it from the U.S. (ICE — Travel FAQ). If your old passport holds a valid U.S. visa, keep it: you can use that visa with your new passport (U.S. Department of State — Student Visa).
• Visa. You can stay on an expired F-1 visa as long as you maintain your student status, but in most cases you need a valid visa to return from a trip, and you can’t renew it inside the U.S. (ICE — Travel FAQ).
• Form I-20. Keep it safe; you’ll need it throughout your studies (Study in the States — Form I-20). If yours is lost or destroyed, your DSO can give you a new one (Study in the States — Form I-20).
• Program end date. Check the date on your Form I-20 now. If you won’t finish by then, talk to your DSO about a program extension, which must be requested before that date (Study in the States — Maintaining Status). SEVP’s instructions for DSOs mention academic or medical reasons and suggest getting an explanation from your advisor and current proof of funds (Study in the States — Extending the F-1 Form I-20), so start early.

Step 4 — Report changes to your DSO

• New address or legal name: tell your DSO within 10 days of the change, in the way your school asks (ICE — SEVP regulations). For an F-1 student, reporting a new address to the DSO within 10 days also counts as notifying DHS (ICE — SEVP regulations). Give the address where you actually live, not only a mailing address, unless you can’t receive mail there (ICE — SEVP regulations).
• New email or phone number: report it to your DSO as soon as possible (Study in the States — Back-to-School).
• An application pending with USCIS (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services): USCIS asks you to tell it about any change of address as soon as possible (USCIS — How to Change Your Address). See our change of address guide.

Changing your major or program? Talk to your DSO first (Study in the States — Maintaining Status); a change to your program of study means a new Form I-20 (Study in the States — DSOs and the Form I-20).

Transferring to another school? Bring your DSO written acceptance from another SEVP-certified school, the new DSO’s contact details and the new school’s SEVIS school code (Study in the States — F-1 Transfer Instructions). You agree on a transfer release date, when the new school takes over your SEVIS record (Study in the States — F-1 Transfer Instructions). Keep attending all your classes until then; any work authorization at your current school ends after that date (Study in the States — Transferring). Then register for classes and contact your new DSO within 15 days of the program start date on your new Form I-20 (Study in the States — F-1 Transfer Instructions).

Step 5 — Check in with your DSO before trips abroad

Before you travel, Study in the States says to (Study in the States — Traveling):

• meet your DSO and make sure your SEVIS record is up to date and “Active”;
• make sure your DSO signed your Form I-20 within the last year;
• not leave the U.S. for more than 5 months;
• make sure your passport will be valid for at least six months after the date you return;
• carry your visa, Form I-20 and passport in your hand luggage.

If you have a practical training application pending, Study in the States doesn’t recommend leaving the U.S. (Study in the States — Traveling).

Step 6 — Work only with authorization

An F-1 student may work only with authorization, from the DSO in some cases and from USCIS in others (Study in the States — Maintaining Status). Working without it can mean being forced to leave the U.S. immediately, and you may not be able to come back later (Study in the States — Maintaining Status). See our guide to F-1 work options.

Step 7 — Plan breaks and the end of your program

• Annual vacation. You become eligible after completing at least one full academic year at an SEVP-certified school, and you must intend to register for the term after it (Study in the States — Maintaining Status).
• A break or withdrawal. Talk to your DSO before you stop studying (Study in the States — Maintaining Status). SEVP’s guidance for DSOs (April 2025) says that after a DSO-approved early withdrawal, F-1 students must leave the U.S. within 15 days of the date their record ends (Study in the States — Termination Reasons).
• Finishing your program. After completing your program, you must take action to keep a legal status or leave the U.S. (Study in the States — Maintaining Status). Options to discuss with your DSO include transferring, moving to a new education level or applying to change to another status (Study in the States — Maintaining Status). Start well before your program end date.

The rules are changing in 2026. On July 17, 2026, DHS published a final rule about how long F students are admitted to the U.S.; DHS’s summary says it also covers transfers, changes of major or education level, and the time to leave after your program ends (Study in the States — Final Rule Quick Facts). On September 14, 2026, a federal court postponed the rule, and USCIS says it is following “the previous regulatory provisions” until further notice (USCIS — I-765). DHS says its pages will be updated for the rule (Study in the States — Final Rule Quick Facts), so official pages from different dates can show different numbers, for example for the time to leave (Study in the States — Maintaining Status; Study in the States — Final Rule Quick Facts). Don’t rely on any summary, including ours: before you make plans, ask your DSO which rules apply to you, as DHS advises (Study in the States — Final Rule Quick Facts).

Step 8 — If your SEVIS record is terminated

In SEVIS, “Terminated” means a DSO or DHS ended the record for a reason other than completing the program (Study in the States — SEVIS Statuses). Study in the States calls it the DSO’s way of reporting a concern to SEVP (Study in the States — Transferring). The records of F-2 family members end automatically when the student’s record is terminated (Study in the States — SEVIS Statuses).

What to do:

1. Ask your DSO what your record shows. Your DSO can tell you your SEVIS record status (ICE — Travel FAQ).
2. Ask about the options. Depending on the case, a DSO may look at a correction (if the record was terminated in error), reinstatement through USCIS, or a new SEVIS record and a new entry to the U.S. (Study in the States — DSOs and the Form I-20).
3. Don’t travel abroad on an expired visa while your record is terminated; SEVP advises waiting until it shows “Active” again (ICE — Travel FAQ).
4. Get qualified legal help. What a termination means for you is a legal question. After your DSO, see our guide to free immigration legal help.