Change of status means asking USCIS to change your current nonimmigrant status to F‑1 while you are inside the United States. It is different from applying for a new visa at a consulate and entering the US in F‑1 status.
Before choosing a school, check your credit transfer, visa/status situation, work options, total cost and cashback eligibility.
Two routes
| Route | What it means | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Change status inside the US | File Form I‑539 with USCIS before your current stay, the date on your I‑94, expires. | You must not start classes as a B visitor; travelling abroad while it is pending abandons it; processing can push your start date back. |
| Consular route | Leave the US, apply for an F‑1 visa, then enter no more than 30 days before your programme starts. | The visa interview, travel cost and timing. Visa-exempt nationals such as Canadians go straight to a port of entry. |
What it costs
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Form I‑539 | $470 on paper, $420 online; there is no separate biometrics fee (USCIS fee schedule, G‑1055). |
| SEVIS I‑901 fee | $350 for F‑1; pay it before you file (ICE, 8 CFR 214.13). |
| Premium processing (optional) | $2,075; USCIS aims to act within 30 business days (USCIS). |
| F‑1 visa application (consular route) | $185 (22 CFR 22.1). A $250 visa integrity fee is set by law (Pub. L. 119-21), but we could not confirm it is being collected; check the State Department's fee page for your consulate. |
What to file
- Form I‑539, before your current stay expires. Only the 08/28/24 edition is accepted (USCIS).
- A Form I‑20 from an SEVP-certified school, with "change of status" as the issue reason (USCIS).
- A copy of your I‑94.
- Proof that you can pay for your studies and living costs.
- Your $350 I‑901 payment.
Timing rules that trip people up
- Your status must be unexpired when you file. After that, USCIS says F‑1 applicants do not have to extend their current status all the way to 30 days before the programme start date; M‑1 applicants still do (USCIS).
- As a B‑1 or B‑2 visitor, do not enrol before approval. If you enrol before filing, or while the case is pending, USCIS will deny it (8 CFR 248.1).
- Approval is not a start signal. Your F‑1 status begins on the day USCIS approves it, but you may not work on campus or do practical training until 30 days before your programme start date.
- If there is no decision 15 days before your start date, contact your DSO: the start may need to move to a later term, and the DSO must change it in SEVIS before the date passes.
- Do not travel while it is pending. USCIS treats the application as abandoned if you leave the US (USCIS Policy Manual).
- Processing times are published only in the USCIS processing-times tool; check it before you pick a start date.
Who cannot change to F‑1 inside the US
Visitors who entered on the Visa Waiver Program (ESTA) or the Guam–CNMI visa waiver; anyone in transit without a visa; people in C, D, K or S status; J‑1s subject to the two-year home-residence requirement without a waiver; J‑1s in graduate medical training; M‑1 students; and anyone whose status has expired or who has broken its terms (8 CFR 248.2, 8 CFR 248.1). For them, the consular route is the only one.
The 2026 rule on hold
On 17 July 2026 the Department of Homeland Security published a final rule that would replace duration of status with fixed admission periods of up to 4 years, cut the 60-day period after you finish to 30 days, stop students below graduate level from transferring or changing major in their first academic year, and stop graduate students from transferring, except with SEVP approval (Federal Register, 91 FR 44976). It was due to take effect on 15 September 2026.
On 14 September 2026 the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts postponed the rule nationwide and barred DHS from implementing it while the case continues, in Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration v. DHS (court order, docket). USCIS says it will "proceed under the previous regulatory provisions" (USCIS), and the court has set a status conference for 2 October 2026. USCIS accepts only the 08/28/24 edition of Form I‑539, not the 09/15/26 edition written for the postponed rule. Neither version is settled: check the current position before you plan around it (as of 24 September 2026).
Common mistakes
- Choosing a school before checking whether change of status fits your timeline.
- Assuming approval is guaranteed because a school issued an I‑20.
- Enrolling in classes as a B visitor before approval.
- Leaving the US while the case is pending, which abandons it.
- Working on campus earlier than 30 days before the programme start date.
Official sources to verify
- USCIS: Changing to a nonimmigrant F or M student status
- USCIS: Form I‑539
- USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 2, Part F, Chapter 8
- ICE: the I‑901 SEVIS fee
Rules checked on 24 September 2026 against the official pages linked. They change: confirm on the linked page before you act.
