Fee added to international student bill

By Kali Bhandari

On top of all the fees international students pay for visa processing and international plane tickets – not to mention significant differences in tuition – yet another fee has been added to increase their financial burden.

As of last month, certain groups are required to pay $100 to be put into the SEVIS (Student and Exchange Visitor Information System) database. Those required to pay the fee include newly admitted students applying for a United States entry visa. Non-immigrants, such as those who are in the United States on a temporary work visa and who apply to change status to a F-1 or J-1 visa (designated student visas) with a document issued on or after Sept. 1, 2004 are also included. International students returning to the United States after an absence of five months or more that did not involve participation in a certified study abroad program must also pay the fee.

Julie Misa, interim director of the Office of International Student Affairs (OISA), explained that the fee would help offset government costs with the database.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a regulation implementing the SEVIS fee on Jul. 1. According to the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Web site, the SEVIS fee is mandated by Congress to finance the program office and the automated system that keeps track of students and exchange visitors. The system ensures that international students maintain their status while in the United States.

Misa said some arguments for and against the new fee are valid. On one side, the additional fee is considered an extra burden. The other argument is that the $100 fee is only a fractional amount compared to what international students already pay.

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“But all these fractions add up,” said Woongjee Yoon, sophomore in LAS and an international student from South Korea. “We don’t want to pay, but we don’t have a choice.”

Hye-Won Lee, sophomore in business and another South Korean student, added that international students are not eligible for financial aid or scholarships, and she said the extra fees are too much.

Both women added that while their parents are upset over the amount of fees, their younger siblings would still be applying to schools in the United States and would pay the extra SEVIS fee.

Misa said it was too early to say whether this new fee would deter international students from applying to the University.

Because the SEVIS fee is non-refundable and must be paid before students can apply for a visa, some argue that increasing sunk costs for international students may discourage applications.

Misa said there was a similar non-refundable visa processing fee that doesn’t guarantee a visa. Therefore, the nonrefundable aspect of the SEVIS fee is nothing new for international students.

“It’s hard to say whether this will affect international student applications,” Misa said. “We will probably have a better idea in a year from now.”

The fee is used to:

Maintain and update SEVIS

Hire and train SEVIS Liaison Officers

Staff and manage the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) Office to:

Support the current version of SEVIS and continue to add enhancements

Develop SEVP policies and procedures

Offer SEVIS-related training, assistance and problem resolution to the schools and exchange visitor program sponsors

Maintain enforcement oversight to ensure that:

Schools and exchange visitor program sponsors are maintaining accurate, timely information

Students or exchange visitors who fail to maintain status either leave the United States or apply for reinstatement

Source: http://www.ice.gov/graphics/sevis/i901/faq2.htm