ISPO News eBulletin: Fall 2020

Fall 2020 | Vol 1 | Updates from the International Students & Programs Office @ UC San Diego.

Hello Campus Partners,

As new federal and state regulations are released to the public, ISPO strives to provide information on how these will impact current processes, international students, and campus partners. See important announcements below.

ISPO Welcomes Fall 2020 New Admits

As we start the new academic year unlike any before, ISPO welcomed newly admitted international students in 43 sessions at our New International Student Orientation between September 8th - 18th. In addition to regulatory and informative sessions on acclimating to life in San Diego as an international student, ISPO also focused on offering a wide range of intercultural and networking sessions. One of the most popular virtual networking programs, 'Meet-Ups', provided international students an opportunity to meet others with similar interests or located in the same time zones. Over the course of 9 days, various sessions were fully booked and more than 5,000 students were in total attendance throughout all 43 sessions. ISPO hopes to continue to support and connect our newly admitted students whether they are joining us on campus or remotely this fall. Learn more about ISPO's programming efforts this quarter at iPrograms.ucsd.edu

Fall 2020 Check-In in iPortal

The latest SEVP Guidance for Fall 2020 requires certain international students to report their physical address and location during the Fall term so ISPO can maintain their SEVIS records.

1) Newly-admitted students starting their program INSIDE of the U.S. this fall:

Must update their current address in TritonLink to a U.S. Address
Must submit the Fall 2020 Check-In Form in the iPortal by Friday, October 16, 2020 notifying ISPO of their arrival in the U.S.
NOTE: No action required from newly admitted students starting their programs outside of the U.S. this fall.

2) Continuing students currently OUTSIDE of the U.S. or departs the U.S. during the fall:

Must update their current address in TritonLink to an address outside of the U.S.
Must submit the Fall 2020 Check-in in iPortal by Friday, October 16, 2020 notifying ISPO of their departure from the U.S.
NOTE: NO action required from continuing students remaining in the U.S. this fall.

If at any time after Friday, October 16th, students depart the U.S., they can notify ISPO of their departure by updating their current address in TritonLink to an address outside of the U.S. Learn more at iTravel.ucsd.edu.

Immigration Policy Updates

9/29/2020: 09/30/2020 Injunction on Implementation of Final USCIS Fee Rule

On September 29, 2020, the U.S. District court for Northern California issued a nationwide preliminary injunction and stay on implementation of the 2020 final USCIS fee rule in its entirety. New fees and forms associated with implementation of the rule on October 2, 2020, are now put on hold, as are other aspects of the rule, including the Premium Processing time change from 15 calendar days to 15 business days. Current fees and forms should continue to be used pending final adjudication of the matter.

What does this mean for students filing OPT? New fees and form versions and other changes associated with the final fee rule that were to be effective on October 2, 2020 and described above apply to OPT applications as well. USCIS fees for the I-765 remain at $410 until further notice. Students should download the most current edition of the form on the USCIS webpage. Review the edition date instructions on the USCIS website carefully for which I-765 edition should be used.

ISPO acknowledges the USCIS I-765 Website may not be up to date and reflect notice of the injunction. We encourage students to reach out to iEmployment@ucsd.edu for any clarifying questions.

9/25/2020: DHS Proposed New Rule to Eliminate Duration of Status (D/S) Policy for International Students

On September 25, 2020, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released a Proposed New Rule to On September 25, 2020, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released a Proposed New Rule to eliminate the current duration of status (D/S) policy for international students in F-1 and J-1 status and international researchers and scholars in J-1 status and replacing the policy with a set expiration date for authorized stay. Media sources such as Inside Higher Education also reported on this proposed change and how it will impact the international community.

Under the current policy, students and researchers have the flexibility to make approved changes to their plan without having to depart the United States or undertake a long and complicated government process to extend their status. For example, the time it takes to earn an academic degree does not always fit into a predetermined time period. Programs are added, and experiments and research take longer than anticipated, pushing graduation dates farther away. If finalized, key changes to the policy would include:

Limiting the period of authorized stay for F or J status (students, researchers, scholars, and their dependents) to 2 to 4 years.
Reducing the F-1 grace period allowed to remain in the U.S. after completing a program of study from 60 to 30 days.
Limiting F-1 students in English language programs to a lifetime aggregate of 24 months in language study including academic breaks.
Limiting the number of F-1 programs at the same educational level to a total of three for the lifetime of the student.

The International Students & Programs Office (ISPO) is now fielding inquiries from concerned students regarding how this will impact their current program of study, length of time in the U.S., and their ability to remain at UC San Diego. An announcement was sent to international students on Friday September 25th informing them about the proposed new rule, reassuring them that this is NOT in effect at this time, and referring them to ISPO if they have any questions.

9/18/2020 Canada-Mexico "Essential Travel" Restrictions Extended

The restrictions that allow entry to the United States through land ports of entry along the U.S.-Canada and U.S. Mexico borders for "essential travel" only have been extended through October 21, 2020. Individuals traveling to attend educational institutions is considered essential travel.

9/14/2020: DHS and TSA Terminate Designated Covid-19 Airport Restrictions

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) published notices in the Federal Register that terminate COVID-19 designated arrival airport restrictions, effective September 14, 2020 at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The restrictions had required all flights to land at one of 15 designated U.S. airports if they carried persons who within the last 14 days traveled from, or were otherwise present within, one of the countries designated in the five country-specific Presidential Proclamation coronavirus bans. The country-specific coronavirus proclamations themselves remain in place, however, subject to specific exemptions.

9/11/2020: Inadmissibility on Public Charge Grounds Final Rule Back In Effect (Injunction Stayed)

On September 11, 2020, The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued a decision that stays the prior injunction to these regulations; U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published information on their website on September 22 indicating how they will apply the regulations retroactively to February 24, 2020. If you have a pending I-129 petition filed on your behalf and/or a pending I-539 application as of the September 22 notice date and which was filed after the July 29th injunction date, USCIS may ask for missing evidence prior to adjudication. USCIS will not re-adjudicate any petitions/applications that have already been approved following the injunction date and prior to the September 22nd notice date. Read the final rule here.

New to iPortal?

ISPO uses the iPortal online request system to intake student requests. Various requests within the iPortal require prior approval from the student’s department or college to ensure validity of academic requirements prior to ensuring eligibility for immigration benefits. The iPortal accommodates this need by routing certain requests to colleges and departments for electronic review and approval.

Primary Approver and Sub-approver Designated and Responsibilities

Routed requests in iPortal can be accessed by logging into iPortal (iPortal.ucsd.edu). Colleges and departments will be assigned a minimum of one primary approver who will have access to all request. Primary approvers can add sub-approvers, or other staff within their units, to assist in approving these routed requests. Only primary approvers can add sub-approvers within the iPortal. Each unit will receive emails when students submit requests that are immediately routed to them for approval. Approvers should review validity of academic information that students have submitted within their applications. View iPortal’s Training Guide for Departments and Colleges. To stay within normal processing times for student requests, ISPO asks all approvers to review and process requests within 3 business days.

Technical Support

For technical support, email iPortal@ucsd.edu or view iPortal's Training Guide for Departments and Colleges.

Fall 2020 Extended ISPO Advising Hours

ISPO has expanded virtual advising hours to accommodate different time zones for the fall quarter. We have expanded our advising hours through Zoom Virtual Advising to reflect the following:

MON: 9 AM - 4 PM PST
TUES: 1 PM - 6 PM PST
WED: 9 AM - 6 PM PST
THU: 9 AM - 6 PM PST
FRI: 9 AM - 4 PM PST

Note, ISPO is closed everyday from 12-1 PM PST. As we continue to shift our services to accommodate the needs of our students, this schedule may fluctuate and is subject to change. ISPO's most current advising hours can be found at iContact.ucsd.edu.

10/15 Out of the Woods:

ISPO Resource Fair

ISPO is hosting our annual Out of the Woods Resource Fair on Thursday, October 15th from 5-8pm PST. This resource fair is for newly admitted international students who are starting their programs this fall, regardless of location and timezone! As newly admitted students acclimate to virtual learning and 'campus life', we hope to answer any other questions they may still have to get them “out of the woods”! We have brought together different campus departments, student organizations and off-campus vendors that are all relevant to the international student experience at UC San Diego. Students can register at virtualfairs.ucsd.edu.