Running a US F-1 case

The dependency that sets the timeline

A school issues the I-20 only after its own financial review passes. That review is not a formality: the DSO is certifying to the US government that the student can pay the first year, and the figure they check against is the school's own cost of attendance, not a number the family proposes.

So the practical order is: acceptance, then financial evidence, then I-20, then SEVIS fee, then DS-160, then the appointment. Counsellors who collect financial documents after the offer routinely lose three weeks, because the bank statement they receive is older than the school will accept and has to be reissued.

What the financial evidence has to show

Liquid funds covering one academic year of tuition plus living costs as the school states them. Not the family's estimate of living costs, and not the tuition alone.

A sponsor is allowed, and a sponsored case needs the sponsor's own statements plus a letter naming the student and the relationship. Property, vehicles and business valuations are not liquid and generally do not count towards the figure, whatever a family has been told.

Statements are usually expected to be recent - many schools ask for the last three to six months - which is why collecting them early and reissuing them later is the common mistake.

The SEVIS fee and the interview

The I-901 SEVIS fee is paid once per SEVIS ID and must be paid before the interview. Keep the receipt in the student's file; consulates ask for it and reissuing it is slower than storing it.

The interview is short - often under three minutes - and turns on whether the officer believes the student is going to study and intends to return. Coaching a student on truthful answers to the obvious questions is legitimate preparation. Scripting answers is not, and officers recognise it.

What trips these cases up

Drawn from refusal reasons rather than from official guidance. Shortest first.

• Financial evidence dated too far in the past by the time the school reviews it.
• Funds shown as property or business value rather than as liquid savings.
• The sponsor letter missing the relationship or the student's full name as it appears on the passport.
• SEVIS fee paid against the wrong SEVIS ID after a transfer or a reissued I-20.
• A DS-160 name or passport number that does not match the I-20 exactly.
• Booking the interview before the SEVIS receipt is in hand.

The milestones, in order

The track Visatory ships for this country. Each agency can edit its own copy; this is the starting point.

1. 01Acceptance confirmed with the schoolagency · 3 working days
2. 02Financial evidence preparedstudent · 10 working days
3. 03I-20 requested from the schoolagency · 2 working days
4. 04I-20 receivedinstitution · 14 working days
5. 05SEVIS I-901 fee paidstudent · 3 working days
6. 06DS-160 submittedagency · 5 working days
7. 07Visa application fee paidstudent · 2 working days
8. 08Consular interview scheduledstudent · 7 working days
9. 09Interview preparation completedoptionalagency · 5 working days
10. 10Interview attendedstudent
11. 11Visa issuedgovernment · 10 working days
12. 12Pre-departure briefing doneoptionalagency

Questions counsellors ask

How long does an I-20 take?

Between three and fifteen working days after the school accepts the financial evidence. The variation is the school's review queue, not the paperwork, so chasing the DSO rarely helps and submitting complete evidence the first time always does.

Can the SEVIS fee be paid before the I-20 arrives?

No. The fee is paid against the SEVIS ID printed on the I-20, so the document has to exist first.

Does a refusal close the case?

No, but the exact wording of the refusal is what a reapplication is built from. Record it word for word on the day it is given - a paraphrase written weeks later is worth very little.