Office of International
Students & Scholars
International Center
421 Temple Street
New Haven, CT 06511
USA

Phone: 203.432.2305
Fax: 203.432.7166
email: oiss@yale.edu

J-1 Students

J-1 student status will allow you to remain in the U.S. for the duration of your full-time academic program. To maintain your J-1 student status you must take at least three courses per semester at the undergraduate level and meet all Yale College requirements for promotion. At the graduate level full course of study is defined by your college but usually is three or four courses per semester. J-1 student status permits you to work on-campus and work in an "academic training" job for 18 months during and/or after the completion of your studies with prior permission from your J-1 sponsor. It will also allow you to bring your spouse and children to the U.S. if there are sufficient financial resources for their support. The spouse and dependent children of a J-1 student hold J-2 status and can usually obtain permission from DHS to work in the U.S.

In some cases the J-1 visa carries with it a condition that requires you to return to your home country for two years upon completion of your studies (and academic training) before you are eligible for certain other visas in the U.S., including H-1B and permanent resident status. This "two-year residence requirement" applies to you if you receive any funding (including nominal travel grants) from your home government or a U.S. government agency. It also applies to you, if trained personnel in your field are identified by your home government as being in short supply and your field has consequently been included on the U.S. government's "Exchange Visitor's Skills List." If you do not know whether your country and/or field appears on the "Exchange Visitor's Skills List," check the Department of State Web site before requesting J-1 status.

Length of Stay

All Exchange Visitors student will have "D/S" (Duration of Status) noted on their Form I-94 (arrival/departure card.) "D/S" means that your stay is valid for the duration of the J-1 status, which is the actual end date on the DS-2019 form, plus an additional thirty-day grace period. This thirty days is NOT for employment, extensions, or transfers.

You are eligible for J-1 student status as long as you are a full-time student, plus any authorized period of academic training, plus 30 day grace period.