F1 Visa Maintenance

[Rizzy84 0]

Hi, my wife F1 Visa DS is until Nov. 2018, however her semester will end this Mar. We have already done concurrent filing of the i-130 and i-485 this week. Until when she needs to be enrolled in the school just to keep her status?

 

We highly appreciate any response, thank you!

[KazuriSana 324]

The moment USCIS received and put the AOS petition into the system, your wife's F1 status ended.

[Rizzy84 0]

@BlessedAssurance thank you so much for replying! Appreciate it.

[azblk 338]

1 hour ago, BlessedAssurance said:

The moment USCIS received and put the AOS petition into the system, your wife's F1 status ended.

This is not correct. Filing for AOS  does not void an existing status.

[azblk 338]

2 hours ago, Rizzy84 said:

Hi, my wife F1 Visa DS is until Nov. 2018, however her semester will end this Mar. We have already done concurrent filing of the i-130 and i-485 this week. Until when she needs to be enrolled in the school just to keep her status?

 

We highly appreciate any response, thank you!

D/S means duration of status so there is no set end date. As long as she fulfills all the requirements of her status she remains in status.

[teshah 33]

On 3/2/2018 at 1:45 PM, Rizzy84 said:

Hi, my wife F1 Visa DS is until Nov. 2018, however her semester will end this Mar. We have already done concurrent filing of the i-130 and i-485 this week. Until when she needs to be enrolled in the school just to keep her status?

 

We highly appreciate any response, thank you!

DS means duration of status.  In other words, that visa is valid so long as she maintains her F1 status which she needs to maintain until the I-130 and I-485 have been adjudicated and approved.  If the F1 visa expires before her status is adjusted, she will still remain in status so long as she maintains a valid I-20.

 

On 3/2/2018 at 2:22 PM, BlessedAssurance said:

The moment USCIS received and put the AOS petition into the system, your wife's F1 status ended.

Not true!

[KazuriSana 324]

32 minutes ago, teshah said:

DS means duration of status.  In other words, that visa is valid so long as she maintains her F1 status which she needs to maintain until the I-130 and I-485 have been adjudicated and approved.  If the F1 visa expires before her status is adjusted, she will still remain in status so long as she maintains a valid I-20.

 

Not true!

So, while her AOS is pending, can she travel to Mongolia, Wakanda, Canada, and back into the US on the F1 DS visa?

[teshah 33]

4 minutes ago, BlessedAssurance said:

So, while her AOS is pending, can she travel to Mongolia, Wakanda, Canada, and back into the US on the F1 DS visa?

Yes, so long as status is still maintained, visa is still valid and school isn't in session (unless the trip has something to do with her class in which case she can).  On the other hand, if the AOS is still pending after the visa expires, she can still travel but will need a new visa to get back in.

Edited March 6, 2018 by teshah

[KazuriSana 324]

2 minutes ago, teshah said:

Yes, so long as status is still maintained, visa is still valid and school isn't in session (unless the trip has something to do with her class in which case she can).  On the other hand, if the AOS is still pending after the visa expires, she can still travel but will need a new visa to get back in.

Interesting!

 

So one would have a double/dual status:

• F1
• EAD-AP-AOS pending"

I am not convinced this is possible. But then, there are many ways to have your cake and eat it, and a number of ways to skin a fox!

[azblk 338]

16 minutes ago, BlessedAssurance said:

So, while her AOS is pending, can she travel to Mongolia, Wakanda, Canada, and back into the US on the F1 DS visa?

It is a little more complicated than that but the short answer is yes she can. She stops being F-1 only if she uses one of the benefits of AOS, If she applied for EAD/AP along with her i-485 then she would lose her status if she used any of those benefits. Besides that as long she stays in school she keeps her F-1 status.

[azblk 338]

4 minutes ago, BlessedAssurance said:

Interesting!

 

So one would have a double/dual status:

• F1
• EAD-AP-AOS pending"

I am not convinced this is possible. But then, there are many ways to have your cake and eat it, and a number of ways to skin a fox!

While F-1/J-1 are not dual purpose visas statutorily, Practically the USCIS treats them as such

[teshah 33]

38 minutes ago, BlessedAssurance said:

Interesting!

 

So one would have a double/dual status:

• F1
• EAD-AP-AOS pending"

I am not convinced this is possible. But then, there are many ways to have your cake and eat it, and a number of ways to skin a fox!

When I was going through the process, I was told I had to maintain my F1 status while my AOS was pending.  Once that was approved, I became a permanent resident and ceased being an F1 visa holder.

[KNMI 1]

The whole AOS/F-1 dual status is a bit weird. Three things to note:

 

1. The NOA received after filing AOS can be used of legal presence while the AOS is being adjudicated, so the I-20 can expire without repercussion. 

 

2. The F-1 is a non-immigrant visa. You are not allowed to conceal immigrant intent upon entering the country with an F-1, and having submitted an AOS application obviously reflects immigrant intent. If the officer at the port of entry sees that you have applied for an adjustment of status, you may be not be allowed to enter on your F-1 and your AOS will be jeopardized.

 

3. Your SEVIS record is maintained by your designated school official. In practice, your SEVIS record remains intact for the duration of your status, unless you violate the terms of the F-1 visa,  you use a benefit of AOS (such as EAD or AP), or your I-485 is approved.  If the I-485 is denied for whatever reason, keeping to the terms of your original F-1 status may allow you to fall back on that given that your SEVIS record remained intact. You should consult your school regarding specific procedures.