SEVIS Update

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement division of the Department of Homeland Security recently sent a memorandum to all SEVIS certified academic institutions providing updated information on the creation of I-20s and the implications of these changes. If your institution is approved by DHS to enroll foreign students visiting this country using F, M or J visas and you did not receive the memo, you can access it on the "Weekly SEVIS Updates" link from the SEVIS homepage at http://www.ice.gov/graphics/enforce/imm/sevis/index.htm.

The changes detailed in the memo stem from the release of an updated version of the program; institutions should now be using release 4.8 of SEVIS. As of January 2, 2004 (the date of the release of version 4.8) the only reasons an institution may use for generating a new I-20 form are for a new F or M visa student to report "Initial Attendance" or "Initial Attendance - Change of Status Requested." All other reasons that were previously available in the drop-down list have been removed; they were considered temporary tags to be applied to existing foreign students as they were being entered into the SEVIS system. At this time, all F and M students already in the United States - including those who have transferred institutions or who were considered out-of-status and must apply for reinstatement - should be in the SEVIS system, therefore the additional I-20 generation reasons have been removed.

Ant questions regarding this update or the SEVIS system in general should be directed to the Help Desk at 800-892-4829. CCA will continue to post updates and information on the SEVIS system as they become available.

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