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Media Note

 Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC

July 3, 2012

• The Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) is aware of current difficulties that some F and M students have when applying for a Social Security number (SSN) or driver’s license. SEVP and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) Program are working on a solution that they will implement on September 14, 2012.

As many of you know, SEVP and its partners at the Department of State (DoS) have been working toward a two-phase deployment of SEVIS II. Phase one, the creation of customer accounts and the migration of school and sponsor records, was planned to start in March of this year, and phase two, full operating capability, was planned to deploy in October. This schedule has changed. For the reasons described below, a final decision on the schedule has not been reached. However, we can say that SEVIS II will not be deployed this year.

News Releases

May 12, 2011

WASHINGTON-U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) published an expanded list of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) degree programs that qualify eligible graduates on student visas for an Optional Practical Training (OPT) extension-an important step forward in the Obama administration's continued commitment to fixing our broken immigration system and expanding access to the nation's pool of talented high skilled graduates in the science and technology fields.

Media Note Office of the Spokesman Washington, DC
May 20, 2011

[Also available in Persian]

As of May 20, 2011, qualified Iranian applicants for visas in the F, J, and M categories for non-sensitive, non-technical fields of study and research and their dependents will be eligible to receive two-year, multiple-entry visas. This is an increase in the current visa validity of three months, single entry.

[Federal Register: June 10, 2011 (Volume 76, Number 112)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 33970-33974]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr10jn11-3]

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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

8 CFR Part 214

[Docket No. ICEB-2011-0003]
RIN 1653-ZA03

Please check the attachment. 

Only schools that are certified by the Student and Exchange Visitor Program are authorized to accept international students.
Please check the link "Study in the States" to know more.

Published by: The Times of India -  August 29, 2025

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/nri/dhs-regulation-seeks-to-tighten…

Quotes and Excerpts from Rajiv in the article:

Only schools that are certified by the Student and Exchange Visitor Program are authorized to accept international students. You can use this page to make sure the school you are interested in is certified.

FIND AN SEVP-CERTIFIED SCHOOL

A registered nurse who is coming to the United States to perform labor in covered health care occupations (other than as a physician) and wishes to apply for Immigrant Visa(Permanent Resident Status) is required to have the following: 

• USCIS interim memo clarifying the eligibility requirements for a 17-month extension of Post-Completion OPT for F-1 students enrolled in STEM degree programs. Comments accepted until 11/1/13 and memo is in effect until further notice.

Please check the attached memo.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is proposing changes to the requirements governing its Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) that are intended to improve management of international student programs and increase opportunities for study by spouses and children of nonimmigrant students.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the launch of the 2014 Secretary’s Honors Program (SHP) Cyber Student Volunteer Initiative for college students. Through the program, more than 100 unpaid student volunteer assignments will be available to support DHS’ cyber mission at local DHS field offices in over 60 locations across the country.