ICE-SEVIS Releases Benefits for Japanese and Egyptian F-1 students in the US  

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To: All SEVIS Users
Date: March 30, 2011
Re: Available Immigration Benefits for Japanese Nationals
Number: 1103-01
On March 17, 2011, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released an update that provides reminders of available immigration benefits that may provide relief, as applicable.  Any school official with Japanese students that may require relief because of the natural disaster in Japan should consult the following USCIS resources for details:
“USCIS Reminds Japanese Nationals Impacted by Recent Disaster of Available Immigration
Benefits” http://1.usa.gov/g5bzvT
“USCIS Reminds Japanese Nationals Impacted by Recent Disaster: Questions and Answers”
http://1.usa.gov/gp3XNv
Contact SEVP at SEVP@dhs.gov for answers to any remaining questions.
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To: All SEVIS Users
Date: March 30, 2011
Re: Egyptian Students with Expiring Passports
Number: 1102-01
Comments
To comment on this Broadcast Message, please e-mail sevp@dhs.gov with “Broadcast Message
1102-01 – Comment” entered in the subject line.
Purpose
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) requires an F, M and J nonimmigrant
who petitions for benefits to submit evidence of a valid passport, as defined on the applicable
form, at the time of petition. Because of the sensitive situation in Egypt, the processing period to
renew passports has increased. This broadcast message provides guidance to designated school
officials to inform Egyptian students of these processing times.
General Information
In February, the Egyptian military dissolved Parliament. This affected government services,
including the processing period to receive a passport. Because USCIS requires an F, M or J
nonimmigrant to present evidence of a valid passport, as defined on the applicable form, when applying for certain benefits, the Egyptian Embassy in Washington, D.C. provided guidance to Egyptians to assist them apply to USCIS and inform them of new processing periods to renew their passports.
The Egyptian Embassy recommends that any Egyptian applying to renew a passport should
follow this process:
• Contact the embassy in Washington, D.C.
• Inform the representative of the intent to renew a passport.
• Report in person to the embassy with whatever documents the representative requires.
• Have embassy representative review all documents and submit them to Egypt for
processing.
• Inform the representative if renewing the passport for submission to USCIS.
The representative will provide the F, M or J nonimmigrant with a letter informing USCIS of the passport renewal application. USCIS will accept this letter as a part of the benefits package. The average processing time to renew a passport is 60 days.
Contact the Consular Section of the Egyptian Embassy in Washington, D.C. at 202-966-6342 for questions, to schedule a meeting or to speak to a representative.
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Submitting Applications to USCIS USCIS instructs any F, M or J nonimmigrant applying for a benefit to submit all required documents at the time of filing. For an Egyptian nonimmigrant with an expired passport, USCIS recommends submitting a letter of explanation with a brief description of the situation (i.e., the F, M or J nonimmigrant applying to renew an Egyptian passport) and provide substantive evidence, such as a receipt from the embassy, with the letter. In addition, the student may provide additional documentation to assist USCIS determine eligibility for the benefit.
USCIS has informed all of its service centers of the process.