Cordell Hull Foundation J-1 VISA RENEWAL PROCESS 2011
First step is to obtain a job offer from the school to continue teaching. If your continued participation in our J-1 exchange teacher visitor program for the next school year has been approved, you must obtain a new DS-2019 form after your school has provided the information requested by CHF, including salary raises or change of teaching responsibilities.
Read the back side of your renewal DS-2019 form, then sign and date where required in the bottom portion on the front side.
**If you do not leave the US, you do not have to renew the J-1 visa in your passport. The renewal DS-2019 form will keep you in J-1 status.
After completing the bottom line on the front side of your DS-2019 form, fold and staple it inside your passport. Keep all previous DS-2019 forms folded and stapled in your passport, in such a way that the US Immigration Officer may read them without unstapling from your passport. BE sure to keep your original DS-2019 forms signed by the consular officer at the American Embassy when you got your original J-1 visa passport stamp.
If you are planning to leave the United States, first check the valid dates of the J-1 visa stamp in your passport. If the J-1 visa will expire before the start of the next school year, you must return to an American Embassy in the country you visit to update your J-1 visa stamp.
You cannot obtain an updated J-1 visa stamp within US borders.
Important note: Depending upon your country of origin, you may be able to re-enter the US two weeks before your J-1 visa passport expiration if you have a renewal DS-2019 form showing you in valid J-1 visa status for at least one more school year.
Chinese alert: If you return to China, you must renew your J-1 visa stamp before re-entering the US. The American Embassy in China is currently issuing J-1 visas to teachers for one-year periods only for teachers paid by the Chinese government (Hanban).
If you are staying in the US, you will not need to re-enter the US. All you need to remain in status is:
renewal DS-2019 form from the Cordell Hull Foundation with travel validation signature good for the upcoming school year. If in doubt about the term of your travel validation, read the fine print in the lower right hand corner box above the hand-written date.
The Exchange Visitor Program was designed to give foreign nationals an opportunity to discover American culture. Living and working in a country is the best way to learn about and adapt to a foreign culture and hone your language skills if you are not a native speaker of English. Traveling in the country is another way. During the summer, we advise you to travel around the US, where you can find a wealth of interesting cities and places to visit. You will benefit from staying and exploring the US rather than returning to your home country, where you have lived all your life and can easily visit again at the end of your Exchange Visitor Teacher Program with CHF. After you return to your home country, travel to the US will be more difficult, expensive and time-consuming. If you do not leave the US, you never need to return to the American Embassy to update your J-1 visa stamp. All you need is a renewal DS-2019 form from CHF, and we keep your J-1 status active in the online SEVIS database.
If you do decide to plan international travel before or during J-1 passport visa expiration, begin the process of J-1 visa renewal by reading the instructions in the non-immigrant visa section of the American Embassy website in the target country. Check www.cordellhull.net/CHF1 and click on your country for quick links to access American Embassy webpages worldwide.
Be sure to double-check the website again just prior to gathering your paperwork. Visa application rules at various American Embassies change frequently and without notice.
You must pay an entrance fee to a bank in advance of $140 (usually in the native currency) as of 2011. Check the website for instructions as to cost and method of payment. In order to gain entrance to the Embassy, you must show the original receipt for having paid this fee. Download it from the Internet and print it out. You do NOT pay the SEVIS fee again. It is a one-time only fee.
The following U.S. Embassy interactive application form must be completed for your visa application on the Internet: Form DS-160. See http://www.cordellhull.net/PW10/DS-160.html for information. Be sure to include all required documents and answer every question on the application forms. List a home address and telephone no. in your home country. One requirement of a J-1 non-immigrant visa is to have a residence abroad. Print out a receipt for completing the DS-160 and bring it to your visa interview. Make sure your application is complete. If not, your visa may be denied. Form DS-160 is available to download at https://ceac.state.gov/genniv
To obtain a J-1 teacher or J-2 dependent visa stamp in your passport, most embassies require you to present in person:
(1) this letter, (2) the renewal DS-2019 form that you have signed and dated,
(3) a digital passport photo meeting the strict requirements described on the American Embassy website,
(4) your biometric passport, valid for 6 months beyond the expiration date in Section 3 on your DS-2019 form,
(5) printed-out receipt for completing interactive Visa Application Form DS-160 online,
(6) original bank receipt for paying the visa application fee - $140 as of 2011 if paid separately from completing Form DS-160.
When you re-enter the US, you must have your most recent DS-2019 form on your person. If not, you may be denied entry. You will receive a small white I-94 card on the airplane. Before leaving the immigration inspector, check to make sure the I-94 card is marked "D/S" next to "UNTIL" (no expiration date) and that J-1 is your visa classification. Staple the white I-94 card inside your passport and also the DS-2019 form after presenting it to the inspector. If you are photographed and fingerprinted upon entry to the U.S., do not be alarmed. It is a routine procedure.