Introduction
U.S. Immigration regulations require F-1/J-1 students report to the school as soon as possible upon entry to the United States but "no later than the [start of classes] as listed in SEVIS.” [8 CFR 214.3(g)(iii)(C))]
At LSU, to meet the reporting requirement, students must complete the SEVIS Check In eform.
Who must report and when
Students must be physically in the United States to complete the SEVIS Check In because the eform requires students to upload various documents, one of which is only obtained after being granted entry to the United States.
| Students who are required to report |
LSU I-20 Form Issue Reason** |
Time frame to complete the SEVIS Check In |
| F-1/J-1 students who are new to LSU. |
Initial |
Within the first week of entering the U.S. or at new International Student Orientation, but no later than one week after classes begin. |
| F-1/J-1 students who have transferred their SEVIS record from another U.S. school. |
Transfer Pending |
No later than 15 calendar days of their LSU I-20/DS-2019 program start date, per Immigration regulation. They may report earlier after receiving the LSU I-20/DS-2019. |
| F-1/J-1 students who are returning to LSU for a new program of study. |
Change of Education Level |
No later than one week after classes begin. They may report earlier. |
| New or continuing students who have changed status to F-1 student within the United States. |
Change of Status |
No later than one week after classes begin and only after receiving a Change of Status Approval Notice from USCIS. |
**Note: The DS-2019 form does not have an issue reason.
How to report your arrival
Students will need their myLSU credentials -- username and password -- to access the iTiger Portal and complete the SEVIS Check-in form. International Student Services (ISS) encourages students to review our article SEVIS Check-in Help Guide for a list of materials and information needed to complete the form.
ISS cannot activate/validate SEVIS records until after students complete and submit the SEVIS check-in form. Be advised that failure to have an active/validated SEVIS record can put you out of lawful student status.
Please be aware that, if students submit any other requests to International Student Services (like a DSO letter request for Social Security purposes), ISS will not be able to process those requests until the SEVIS Check-in Form is completed.
your arrival to the United States
Step-by-Step screenshots
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Step 1:
On the iTiger home page, click on the SEVIS Check in section.
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Step 2: 
Navigate to and click on the SEVIS Check-in Form.
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Step 3: 
Click the "Save Draft" button to complete the form later, or click "Submit" when you are done.
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