Greetings!
The SIUE community continues to address the challenge of COVID-19 and comply with the
“Stay-at-Home”
order in place as of Saturday. The Morris University Center, including Union Station, and the Student Success Center will be closed for in-person visits. Read below for updates about ISSS operations effective immediately.
Travel
At this time our office has limited ability to sign and mail new I-20s/DS-2019s with travel signatures. Please be aware that you do not need a travel signature to leave the U.S., you only need one to re-enter the U.S.
- Should you decide to leave the U.S. submit the Travel Survey. If you have urgent plans to return to the U.S., please email isss@siue.edu. If not, please wait until after April 15 to contact us about a new travel signature.
- For life-safety emergencies or if a Customs and Border Protection officer needs to reach us, please contact the SIUE police 618-650-3324.
For the latest information about Travel Advisories, please review the links below:
OPT Applications
If you are completing your degree in the Spring 2020 semester, you may apply for
OPT up to 60 days
after your expected program completion date. OPT Applications will not be accepted at this time and will not be processed until The Governor lifts the “Stay at Home” order and the University provides additional guidance.
Advising
For immigration issues (including class enrollment, OPT or CPT), please email or request an appointment with Cheryl Haegele or Amy Nusser at
isss@siue.edu
. Appointments will be confirmed by each advisor and conducted via zoom or phone.
For international student programming issues (orientation, pre-arrival communication), please contact Gaby Renteria-Poepsel at
grenter@siue.edu
.
For general questions or concerns about International Affairs, please contact Mary Weishaar at
mweisha@siue.edu
.
In this first week of classes offered in an online format, we encourage you to review the following resources available to all students to help assist you in this transition:
Class Registration & Enrollment Requirements
Summer and Fall Registration begins today. International students must register for and complete a
full course load each semester
(not including summer). As a reminder, you are allowed to enroll in any number of online courses in summer. However, you can one register in
ONE
online course
each regular semester
. Taking more than ONE
online class
in a semester means the student’s immigration will be “out-of-status.”
See full-time requirements below:
- Undergraduate students: 12 credit hours (4 courses)
- Graduate students: 9 credit hours (3 courses)
- Graduate students with a Graduate Assistantship: 6 credit hours (2 courses)
Taxes
International Students or scholars who were in the U.S. last year and need to file their taxes can still obtain a Sprintax Tax Preparation code via email.
The deadline to file federal taxes has been extended to July 15.
In Illinois, the deadline to file is the same as the federal.
To obtain your code, send an email request to Gaby Renteria-Poepsel at
grenter@siue.edu
, she will provide codes via email Monday through Friday. You will receive a code and a flier with instructions. The Sprintax code allows you to file the Federal 1040NR and Form 8843. State tax return preparation is offered at an additional cost paid by the student.
Each code is unique and only valid for one use. Unique codes cannot be shared.
Sprintax will guide you through the tax preparation process, prepare the necessary documents, and even check if you are due a refund. Information about taxes is also found on
our website
.
Your Health
To avoid protect yourself from COVIID-19:
- Wash your hands thoroughly and frequently.
- Stay home if you are sick.
- Limit social gatherings to smaller numbers of people with more social distancing.
- Take extra efforts to clean and disinfect touch surfaces.
- Work from home if you can.
We are mindful of the impact this may have on our international students while social distancing guidelines are in place, and we encourage you to reach out to the resources on campus available to you for support:
For additional information on Coronavirus (COVID-19), please see the following resources:
Additional Resources
for the latest updates. You are a valued member of our campus community, and we are here to support you. We encourage you to reach out to us with any questions or concerns.
