We are often asked by school owners how to become an “I-20” school. “I-20” school are schools that can enroll students from abroad and issue I-20 visas so the international student may enter the United States. Since 9/11 the US Department of Homeland Security has been in charge of international student admissions and controls the process though the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Created in March 2003, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is the largest investigative branch of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The agency was created after 9/11, by combining the law enforcement arms of the former Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) and the former U.S. Customs Service, to more effectively enforce our immigration and customs laws and to protect the United States against terrorist attacks. ICE does this by targeting illegal immigrants: the people, money and materials that support terrorism and other criminal activities. ICE is a key component of the DHS “layered defense” approach to protecting the nation.

To apply for I-20 status a school must be approved to operate in the State it is located and be accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency. The application is an I-17 and you can read the regulations governing the petition for approval at the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement website by clicking on the I.C.E logo below:

The Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) School Certification Branch (SCB) is responsible for evaluating Form I-17, Petition for Approval of School for Attendance by Nonimmigrant Student, to determine whether educational institutions meet the minimum eligibility requirements to be approved by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Non-immigrant students who come to the United States to pursue full-time academic or vocational/ technical training are usually admitted in one of two non-immigrant categories.

• The F-1 category includes academic students in colleges, universities, seminaries, conservatories, and academic high schools, other academic institutions, Fine Arts, and language training. For Federal regulations concerning F-1 students visit 8 CFR 214.2 (f) Academic and Language Students
• The M-1 category includes vocational, technical training, flight schools, and non-academic schools. For Federal regulations concerning M-1 students visit 8 CFR 214.2 (m) Vocational Students

CERTIFICATION CRITERIA

If your institution does not meet the following basic requirements, it will be ineligible for SEVP certification. The school must be:

1. A bona fide school;

2. An established institution of learning;

3. Possess the necessary facilities, personnel, and finances to conduct instruction in

recognized courses of study;

4. The institution must currently be engaged in instruction at the time of filing and NOT at some point prior to final adjudication;

5. Institutions applying for M classification (vocational AND technical training), must have programs which meet for a minimum of 18 hours per week if the program is primarily classroom instruction, or 22 hours per week if the program is primarily lab work;

6. English language schools must have programs that meet for a minimum of 18 hours per week (for more information click here).

The Certification Process

Certification is a process consisting of a series of steps that require very specific understanding of all applicable federal regulations. Certification is achieved through an adjudicative process that includes a review of the application, site visit inspection, research, review of supporting documentation, and adjudication of the entire submitted package. The certification process takes a minimum of 16 weeks before a decision is reached and SCB processes petitions on a first-in, first-served basis. (This time-frame does not include delays that result when a certification package is incomplete and additional requests for evidence are required.)

Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) acts as the bridge for varied government organizations which have an interest in information on foreign students. SEVP uses web-based technology, the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) to track and monitor schools and programs, students, exchange visitors and their dependents throughout the duration of approved participation within the U.S. education system.

SEVP collects, maintains and provides the information so that only legitimate foreign students or exchange visitors gain entry to the United States. The result is an easily accessible information system that provides timely information to the Department of State, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and U. S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

What is an SEVP-certified school?

An SEVP-certified school is a college, university, seminary, conservatory, high school, private elementary school, other academic or vocational institution, or language training program in the United States that has applied for and received certification.

What is SEVP certification?

Certification is the process schools go through to receive authorization from DHS to enroll F or M nonimmigrants. Within U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), SEVP approves schools that desire to enroll nonimmigrant students, or withdraws that approval. (Note: Certification does not pertain to exchange visitor programs, which are authorized to enroll J nonimmigrants as exchange visitors by the Department of State through its verification process.)

What regulations govern SEVP certification?

8 CFR 214.3 governs the certification process.

What schools are eligible for SEVP certification to enroll F 1 nonimmigrants?

The following schools are considered to be academic institutions and may be approved for attendance by nonimmigrant students under section 101(a)(15)(F)(i) of the Act:

A college or university (i.e., an institution of higher learning which awards recognized bachelor’s, master’s doctor’s or professional degrees)
A community college or junior college which provides instruction in the liberal arts or in the professions and which awards recognized associate degrees
A seminary
A conservatory
An academic high school
A private elementary school
An institution which provides language training, instruction in the liberal arts or fine arts, instruction in the professions, or instruction or training in more than one of these disciplines

What schools are eligible for SEVP certification to enroll M nonimmigrants?

The following schools are considered to be vocational or nonacademic institutions and may be approved for attendance by nonimmigrant students under section 101(a)(15)(M)(i) of the Act:

A community college or junior college which provides vocational or technical training and which awards recognized associate degrees
A vocational high school
A school that provides vocational or nonacademic training other than language training

What schools are eligible for SEVP certification to enroll both F and M nonimmigrants?

A school may be approved for attendance by nonimmigrant students if it has both instruction in the liberal arts, fine arts, language, religion, or the professions and vocational or technical training. In that case, a student whose primary intent is to pursue studies in liberal arts, fine arts, language, religion, or the professions at the school is classified as a nonimmigrant under section 101(a)(15)(F)(i) of the Act. A student whose primary intent is to pursue vocational or technical training at the school is classified as a nonimmigrant under section 101(a)(15)(M)(i) of the Act.

What schools are ineligible for SEVP certification?

The following may not be approved for attendance by foreign students:

Home schools
Pre-school and/or day care institutions
Public elementary or junior high schools (grades K-8)
Schools whose programs are primarily distance education or online (i.e. Internet based)
Adult education program, if the adult education program is funded in whole or in part by a grant under the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act, or by any other federal, state, county or municipal funding
Flight schools that are not Part 141 or Part 142 certified by the Federal Aviation Administration

What are the criteria for SEVP certification?

To be eligible for approval, the petitioning school must establish that it:

Is a bona fide school
Is an established institution of learning or other recognized place of study;
Possesses the necessary facilities, personnel, and finances to conduct instruction in recognized courses; and,
Is, in fact, engaged in instruction in those courses.
Schools must be engaged in instruction (i.e., operational) when they file their petition, not at some point before final adjudication.

For Institutions applying for M (vocational or technical) certification, only programs that meet for a minimum of 18 hours weekly if the program is primarily classroom instruction, or 22 hours weekly if the program is primarily lab work are eligible for approval.

For English language school programs applying for certification, only programs that meet for a minimum of 18 hours weekly, if the program is primarily classroom instruction, or 22 hours weekly if the program is primarily lab work are eligible for approval.

If my school had previous approval from the Immigration and Naturalization Service to enroll nonimmigrant students, do we still have to get SEVP certification?

Yes. All schools, whether or not they had approval prior to January 1, 2003 are required to receive SEVP certification if they want to enroll nonimmigrant F or M students.

What does it mean to a school to have SEVP certification?

Once certified, the school has access to SEVIS and may issue Forms I-20, Certificate of Eligibility for Student Status, to prospective students. To maintain certification, the school must comply with SEVP policies, as well as recordkeeping and reporting requirements stipulated in 8 CFR 214.3.

Can you provide some additional statistics about where students come from?

Generally students come from all over the world, however, based on SEVIS here are some statistics to help you understand the breakdown