Transferring to UTSA

F-1 SEVIS Transfers

If you have been admitted to UTSA and you are currently in an F-1 visa status at another U.S. institution, you will need to transfer your F-1 SEVIS record to UTSA to begin your studies at UTSA.

Please be aware that this is completely separate procedure from the academic transfer. Without completing a transfer of your F-1 SEVIS record, UTSA International Student Services will be unable to issue an I-20 form for you, and you will not be able to begin your studies at UTSA.

Eligibility for School Transfer

To be eligible for an F-1 SEVIS transfer:

• You must maintain your F-1 status at your current school.
• You must be admitted to UTSA.
• You must be eligible for issuance of an I-20 Form at UTSA.
• Your program of study at UTSA must begin within 5 months of the end of  your program of study at your current school or the SEVIS transfer release date, whichever is earlier.
•  If you are on Post-completion Optional Practical Training (OPT), the course of study at UTSA must begin within 5 months of the end of OPT or the SEVIS release date, whichever comes earlier.

Procedures

1. Notify your current International Student Advisor of your intention to transfer to UTSA.
If you are admitted to UTSA and intend to begin a full time study at UTSA, you must notify an international student advisor at your current school. You should download F-1 SEVIS Transfer-in form and take it with you when you meet with the international student advisor at your current school. At the meeting you need to discuss your intent to transfer schools and determine when your SEVIS record will be released to UTSA.

This date is called the SEVIS release date.

Your SEVIS release date should be noted in the F-1 SEVIS Transfer-in form. Only after the SEVIS release date will UTSA International Student Services be able to issue you a transfer I-20 form. UTSA International Student Services also must have all the necessary documents for issuance of an I-20 form.

Please be aware that the F-1 SEVIS Transfer-in form needs to be completed by both you and an international student advisor at your current school.

2. Submit all the necessary documents to International Services.
In order for UTSA International Services to process your SEVIS transfer, our office must have the following documents:

• Completed UTSA Confirmation of Financial Resources form
• Financial support documents
• Copy of the name page of your passport with expiration date: the expiration date should be at least six months in the future.
• Permanent overseas or foreign address
• Copy of your current I-20
• SEVIS Transfer form
• City of Birth

Submit the above documents to International Student Services through one of the two methods:

• Email the documents as attachments to newinternational@utsa.edu. Please do not send compressed files (.zip, .rar, etc). We accept PDF, JPEG, JPG file formats.
• Mail the documents to:

3. Make arrangements for express mail to receive your I-20 form, if necessary.
Once UTSA International Student Services receives all the required documents, we will issue a Transfer Pending I-20 form after the SEVIS release date. 

If you would like to receive the I-20 form by express mail, please make arrangements with EShipGlobal at your own expense. Instructions can be found within the Express Mail Option section of this website.

Your Transfer Pending I-20 is a temporary I-20 and will be updated for an Continued Attendance I-20 form. International Student Services will contact you via your myUTSAemail account regarding when you can pick up your updated I-20 Form

NOTES

• If you are planning to travel outside the U.S. before attending UTSA, you must use the UTSA I-20 re-enter the U.S. 
• If a student completes a course of study or Post-completion Optional Practical Training (OPT), the student is eligible for transfer during the end of the 60-day grace period.
• A student’s authorization for OPT ends on the SEVIS release date or on the end of the work authorization, whichever comes earlier.

J-1 SEVIS Transfers

J-1 students in good academic standing may request to transfer from one educational institution to another as long as the purpose of the transfer is to complete the objective for which they were admitted to as J-1 students. The SEVIS transfer is processed through updates to their SEVIS record performed by both the current school and the new school.

Procedures

1. Meet with your current program sponsor to discuss your intent to transfer to UTSA and to determine a SEVIS Transfer release date.
If you are admitted to UTSA and intend to begin a full time study at UTSA, you must notify your current program sponsor of your intention to transfer to UTSA. You should download the J-1 SEVIS Transfer-in Form and take it with you when you meet with your program sponsor. At the meeting you need to discuss a SEVIS release date with your sponsor.

The SEVIS transfer release date is the date when your SEVIS record will be released to UTSA. This date should be noted in the J-1 SEVIS Transfer-in Form. Only after the SEVIS transfer release date will UTSA International Student Services be able to issue you a transfer DS-2019. UTSA also must have all the necessary documents for issuance of a DS-2019 form.

Please be aware that the J-1 SEVIS Transfer-in Form needs to be completed by you and an international student advisor at your current school.

2. Submit all the necessary documents to International Student Services.
In order for UTSA International Student Services to process your SEVIS transfer, our office must have the following documents:

• Completed UTSA DS-2019 Request Form
• Proof of Funding
• Copy of the name page of your passport with expiration date
• Copy of your current DS-2019
• J-1 SEVIS Transfer-in Form

Submit the above documents to International Student Services through one of the two methods:

• Email the documents as attachments to newinternational@utsa.edu. Please do not send compressed files (.zip, .rar, etc). We accept PDF, JPEG, JPG file formats.
• Mail the documents to:

Once we have received all the necessary documents, we will issue a transfer DS-2019 form after the SEVIS transfer release date. 

If you would like to receive the DS-2019 form by express mail, please make arrangements with EShipGlobal at your own expense. Instructions can be found within the Express Mail Option section of this website.