Overview: LOA or Withdrawal

Your F-1/J-1 status is based on your full-time enrollment. If you are not going be enrolled in courses full-time, you will need to take some kind of immigration action and must notify our office as soon as possible. If you are taking a leave of absence or withdrawing from your studies, working with the Dean of Students Office and ISL is required and separate from anything you must do or file with your academic department. Please speak to a staff member in ISL at least two weeks before the proposed LOA begin date.

If you fail to notify the Dean of Students Office and ISL about your leave, your record will be terminated for “Failure to Enroll” and this could have serious consequences if you want to visit, study or work in the U.S. in the future.

There is no true “leave of absence” for immigration purposes. Your F-1/J-1 record is based off of your full-time registration. If there is a change in your registration or you are not going to be enrolled, some immigration action or process will need to occur. Even if your leave has been approved by the Dean of Students Office, you must still work with ISL to take care of your immigration record.

Before Taking a LOA or Withdrawing

Important considerations

  1. F-1 Students: If you take a leave of absence for more than 5 months, you will not be eligible for CPT or OPT until you have completed three quarters of full-time enrollment after your return from your leave.
  2. If your record is terminated, you cannot remain in the U.S. during your leave. See below for more information.
  3. If your leave is for a documentable medical reason, you can be authorized for a reduced course load based on medical conditions, and your SEVIS record will remain active. Please read more about a medical reduced course load before submitting your Leave of Absence Notification Form.

Necessary actions

  1. Receive approval from the Dean of Students Office for a Leave of Absence. After receiving approval, your SEVIS record will be terminated for “Authorized Early Withdrawal”, which will not adversely affect your immigration record. The exact date of the termination will be based on the date indicated by the DOS Office.
  2. Depart the country within 15 days of the termination date (for “Authorized Early Withdrawal” only). You cannot be in the U.S. with a terminated record. If you are terminated for another reason, such as a suspension or unauthorized employment, you do not have a grace period to leave and you must depart immediately.

 LOA for Medical Reasons

  1. LOA for medical reasons is treated as a Reduced Course Load in SEVIS.
  2. If you will be on LOA for medical reasons for more than 12 months, consult the Dean of Students Office. 

LOA for Non-Medical Reasons:

The process for students to return from LOA will depend on how long you are on LOA and outside the United States.

LOA for ONLY one term & outside of the U.S. for LESS THAN 5 months

  1. ISL terminates your SEVIS record;
  2. Depart the U.S. within 15 days after the termination of your SEVIS record;
  3. Inform the International Student Adviser (email at ecody@carleton.edu) of your plans to return at least 60 days before your intended date of reentry to the U.S.
  4. ISL sends a request to SEVP to return your F-1 record to Active status.**
  5. Once approved, ISL will issue you a new I-20 and you will be able to re-enter the U.S.

 ** Please note that you cannot enter the U.S. under any other status during your Leave of Absence.  If you reenter the U.S. during your Leave of Absence, you will need to apply for a new SEVIS ID (see process below).

LOA for ONLY one Term but outside of the U.S. for MORE THAN 5 months:

  1. ISL terminates your SEVIS record.
  2. Depart the U.S. within 15 days after the termination of your SEVIS record;
  3. Request a new I-20 before returning to the U.S. Prepare to submit a completed Certification of Finances, a copy of your current passport, and a copy of your Financial Aid Award Letter, if received. Your current I-20 is no longer valid. Contact ecody@carleton.edu for more information.
  4. Pay the I-901 SEVIS fee for the new I-20’s SEVIS ID.
  5. Apply for a new F-1 visa, if applicable. It is recommended you contact your nearest U.S. embassy/consulate about whether you will need a new visa.
  6. You will not be eligible for off-campus employment benefits until you are in your new F­-1 status for at least one academic year.

LOA for MORE THAN one Term & outside of the U.S. for MORE THAN 5 months

  1. ISL terminates your SEVIS record.
  2. Depart the U.S. within 15 days after the termination of your SEVIS record;
  3. Request a new I-20 before returning to the U.S. Prepare to submit a completed Certification of Finances, a copy of your current passport, and a copy of your Financial Aid Award Letter, if received. Your current I-20 is no longer valid. Contact ecody@carleton.edu for information.
  4. Pay the I-901 SEVIS fee for the new I-20’s SEVIS ID.
  5. Apply for a new F-1 visa, if applicable. It is recommended you contact your nearest U.S. embassy/consulate about whether you will need a new visa.
  6. You will not be eligible for off-campus employment benefits until you are in your new F­-1 status for at least one academic year. 

Returning from a Leave of Absence

F-1 students returning from a leave of fewer than 5 months

If the gap in your enrollment has been fewer than five months, ISL can usually request that your F-1 status is ‘reactivated’, which allows you to maintain your OPT/CPT eligibility and use the same I-20 and visa (if not expired). Note that ISL can only request that your record is reactivated. USCIS approves the actual reactivation and often requires additional documentation from the school and the student to make the change. If your leave is for fewer than five months, make sure to:

  1. Contact our office by email at least one month before you plan to return to Carleton. This will give us time to request that your record is reactivated with USCIS. After the request is made, a staff member will confirm once your record has been turned back to ‘active’. Processing times vary and can take from 1-4 weeks, so it is important to contact us well in advance.
  2. Be sure you have a valid travel signature on page 2 of your I-20. If not, request an updated signature from a DSO (Brisa Zubia or Liz Cody).
  3. Re-enter the U.S. with all required travel documents, including a valid F-1 visa after your record is set back to ‘active’. Note that reactivation times vary. Our office cannot guarantee when your record will be turned back to ‘active’. Because you will not be able to enter the U.S. unless your record is ‘active’, you may want to wait until your request is approved before purchasing airfare.

F-1 students returning from a leave of more than 5 months and ALL J-1 students

  1. Contact ISL 3 months before you plan to return to Carleton. This will allow time for the creation and receipt of your new SEVIS record/I-20.
  2. Coordinate with the Dean of Students Office to receive approval to return to campus. Once approved, provide ISL with a completed Certification of Finances, a copy of your current passport, and a copy of your Financial Aid Award Letter, if received. You may send your documents by scanned email attachment to ecody@carleton.edu. We do not require physical copies of the financial statements.
  3. Receive your new Form I-20 or DS-2019 from ISL. ISL will send your document via FedEx Priority Mail.
  4. Pay the SEVIS fee online.
  5. F-1 students: Obtain a new F-1 visa, if your visa is expired. If your visa is unexpired, we recommend that you check with the consulate to confirm its validity. J-1 students: Obtain a new J-1 visa, ONLY if your old visa is no longer valid.
  6. Travel to the U.S. no more than 30 days before the start date listed on your new I-20.