New Travel Process

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New Travel Process for International Students, Scholars and Dependents

ISSS has a new process to report international travel and request a travel signature on your Form I-20 or DS-2019. International students, scholars and dependents need a valid travel signature on their immigration document any time they enter the United States after a trip abroad. The signature is given on the travel endorsement section of your document. Once issued, the travel signature is valid for 12 months, or for 6 months if you are an F-1 student on post-completion OPT.

  1. Online Travel Information Record

All international students and visiting scholars who will travel outside the United States should complete the online Travel Information record. This form, along with full travel signature guidelines, can be accessed on our travel webpage.

International students log in to the ISSS portal through the link using their Net ID and password. International scholars (visitors for research or teaching, including student researchers) login in to the ISSS portal using your email address and a password that you set. If you are a visiting scholar and do not yet have login credentials, please email international@uconn.edu.

  1. J-1 Visa Medical Insurance Confirmation Record

If you are on a J-1 visa, you must also make sure that you have an up to date Medical Insurance Confirmation record submitted through the ISSS Portal. If you already submitted this record, you may view your form by visiting isssportal.uconn.edu and viewing your submitted applications on your User Home Page. If you have not yet submitted the Medical Insurance Confirmation record, please do so here.

  1. Bring your most recent I-20 or DS-2019 and other required support documents to ISSS. 

Enrolled students with F and J visas need to bring the Full Time Enrollment Verification from the Registrar showing all semesters you have been enrolled at UConn.

Visiting scholars who will travel for academic purposes need to bring the J-1 Scholar Out of Country Request Form.

Once all documents are submitted, processing can take around one week. Or, visit ISSS Storrs during Walk-In Travel signature week to receive your travel signature on the spot.

Contact ISSS with further questions.

8-Hour Safe Driving Program Offered @ Storrs Campus

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If you will apply for a Connecticut Driver’s License, you must take an 8 Hour Safe Driving course before you can obtain your license. Please see full license procedures on the ISSS webpage.

ISSS is excited to announce that we have collaborated with AAA Driving School to offer the 8-Hour Safe Driving program at the UConn Storrs campus. We anticipate that the course will be held monthly through the end of the academic year.

AAA will provide the course and handle all registration directly. Students may register and pay for the course online at www.aaa.com/drivingschool . Please direct any questions to AAA.

Courses in 2018 will take place:

Nov 17 & 24: 9 am – 1 pm, Chemistry Building A120

Dec 8 & 15: 9 am – 1 pm, Chemistry Building A120

You must attend both dates in the month to complete the course (for example, attend both November 17 and November 24).

We hope this will make it a bit easier for international students who live on campus to obtain their driver’s license. Students and scholars who live in neighboring towns may also use the services of local driving schools in your towns.

ISSS Sponsors Airport Shuttle – BDL to UConn Storrs – January 20

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ISSS will sponsor a shuttle to help new and returning students get from the airport to campus for Spring 2019 semester. The shuttle will run only on January 20 (move in day for residence halls) between Bradley Airport and Storrs campus. The shuttle will pick up every 2.5 hours at Bradley Airport between 10 am and 8 pm, and drop off at the UConn Storrs campus (pick up/drop off locations still to be determined). This service will be free for UConn students, visiting scholars and accompanying family members. If you anticipate using this shuttle, please complete a Bradley Airport Arrival Form. This is not a reservation form, but will notify ISSS how many students may use this service. We will send detailed information on pick-up and drop-off locations to students who complete the form.

SEVP Portal for OPT Students

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On Friday, March 23rd the U.S. Department of Homeland Security implemented a new online tool for students on OPT to keep your information up to date in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS).

Remember, all F-1 visa students on OPT are required by law to report any changes in their address, employer or employment status within 10 days to ISSS.  ISSS, in turn, updates these changes in SEVIS.

The new SEVP Portal allows students to view certain information from their SEVIS record, and update some information directly to the SEVIS record. However, even though the Portal enables you to update some information directly, you are not required to use it. You are still required to update your information changes using the ISSS OPT Information Form, and we will update the information for you in SEVIS.

SEVP Portal FAQ

Who can use the SEVP Portal?

Students who are on active post-completion OPT or STEM OPT extension may access the portal. This means your EAD has been approved and your OPT start date has been reached.

How will I access the SEVP Portal?

Once your OPT has been approved and your state date has been reached, you will

receive an email from do-not-reply.SEVP@ice.dhs.gov.  If you have applied for OPT, but it has not yet been approved, you are not able to access the portal yet. Your portal account invitation will come when your OPT is approved, and the requested start date has been reached. The language in the email makes it sound like you are required to use the SEVP Portal to report your information, but this is not the case. As long as you report your OPT Information updates to ISSS you will still meet your federal visa reporting requirement.

Am I still required to report my information on the ISSS OPT Information Form?

Yes. All students on OPT are still required to report any changes in name, address, contact information and employer/employment information to ISSS directly through the OPT Information Form on the ISSS webpage. Link to ISSS OPT Information Form. You must do this even if you have also reported your information directly through the Portal.

Who can use the portal?

F-1 students with active, approved post-completion OPT and STEM OPT Extension may use the portal to view and update certain biographical and employment information from your SEVIS record. Your SEVIS record is your electronic immigration record which contains information about you, your program of study, and your OPT employment information. It is required to be kept accurate and up to date. The government has access to the information in your SEVIS record, and your University DSO (ISSS staff) can make changes to your SEVIS record. Now you, too, can update certain information directly in your SEVIS record using the SEVP Portal.

What can I see in the portal? What can I update in the portal?

You can view in the SEVP Portal your name and date of birth, address, telephone number, terms of your OPT authorization, and your employer information. Students on standard post-completion OPT may update your physical address, telephone number, and you can add/remove employer and employment information.  Students on STEM OPT may not add employers, but you can edit current employers. This is because you need to submit an I-983 form to ISSS any time you leave/add employers while on STEM OPT Extension.

Am I required to use the portal?

No, using the portal is completely voluntary. In fact, at ISSS we recommend that you only use the portal to view your SEVIS information, since we already update your other required information based on your OPT Information Form.

How long after I report updates through the ISSS OPT Information Form can I see those updates in the portal?

Please allow at least 2 weeks after you submit your ISSS OPT Information to see those updates to your SEVIS record through the portal.

Where can I learn more about the SEVP Portal?

Learn more on the DHS Study in the States website.

Who do I contact if I have problems using the portal?

This depends on the nature of the problem. If you did not receive an email inviting you to create your account, or if you are locked out of your account, you may contact international@uconn.edu for assistance. If you are having technical difficulties using the portal, you may contact the SEVIS Response Center at 703-603-3400.

ISSS Spring Bus Trip (Sunday, 4/8) to Newport – Sign up now!

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 Join us in beautiful Newport, Rhode Island!

Rain or Shine 

Date: Sunday, April 8, 2018
Time: 8am (departs Storrs) – 7pm (departs Newport, Rhode Island)
Tickets – $25 per person

**Choose “ISSS Bus Trip Payment” Option in the link above

For more information: https://international.global.uconn.edu/news/isss-sponsored-bus-trips/