How do you study in the USA from Pakistan on an F-1 visa? (2026)

How do you choose a US university and intake?

Only schools certified by the Student and Exchange Visitor Program, or SEVP, can enrol F-1 students. Before you pay an application fee, search for the university on the official Study in the States school search. If it is not listed, it cannot issue the Form I-20 you need for a student visa, however polished its website looks.

Most US degree programmes start in the autumn, with classes beginning in August or September, and some also admit students in January for the spring term. Check each programme, because some admit only once a year and scholarship deadlines can fall many months before the start. Plan backwards from your intake: tests, applications, the I-20, fees and a visa appointment all take time.

Pick the level of study with care

The new DHS rule, covered below, adds limits that matter now. According to SEVP’s quick facts, students below graduate level cannot transfer or change their level of study in their first year. Under the rule itself, graduate students may not change educational objectives at all. They may transfer only with an SEVP exception, such as a school closure.

If you complete a programme at one level after 15 September 2026, the rule bars F-1 status for another programme at the same or a lower level. A second master’s degree is therefore a problem. DHS may delay or suspend these provisions until 14 September 2028, so check Study in the States when you apply. English language training is capped at 24 months, plus 30 days to depart.

What does the Form I-20 show, and how much money must you prove?

The Form I-20 is the school’s certificate of your eligibility for F-1 status. It carries your SEVIS ID, the school code, your programme and its dates. Study in the States says you may arrive up to 30 days before the start date it lists. Take the original to your interview and keep the signed form in your hand luggage when you travel.

The cost of attendance and funding sections

SEVP’s guidance for school officials explains the financial part of the form. The expenses section lists estimated tuition and fees, living expenses, costs for any dependants and other costs, for the academic year or the length of the programme, whichever is shorter. The funding section lists your personal funds, funds from the school, funds from other sources and, for F-1 students, on-campus employment.

The rule for issuing the form is simple. Total funding must be equal to or greater than total estimated expenses before a school can issue an initial I-20. That is why universities ask for bank statements and sponsor letters before they send it.

What the consular officer expects

The school’s check is only the first test. The Foreign Affairs Manual at 9 FAM 402.5 says you must be able to study without unauthorised work. You do not need cash for the whole degree. You must show readily available funds for all first-year expenses. The officer must also be satisfied that money will be there for each later year.

An existing student loan can count, but a plan to take one out is not enough. Study in the States lists acceptable evidence such as family bank statements, sponsor documents, scholarship letters and an employer letter showing salary. Carry the same papers when you enter the country.

In a Pakistani file, that usually means six or more months of PKR bank statements, your sponsor’s FBR tax returns and salary slips or business records, and any scholarship or assistantship letter. When I review a student’s funding, I read the documents the way an officer would: does the money have a clear, lawful source, and does the sponsor’s income support it?

What are the SEVIS and visa fees, and when do you pay them?

As of 15 September 2026, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement lists the I-901 SEVIS fee at $350 for F and M applicants. SEVP’s payment guidance says the fee must be paid before the State Department issues your visa, using the SEVIS ID and school code on your I-20. You must present proof of payment at the interview, and the printed confirmation serves as that proof.

The visa application fee is separate. As of 15 September 2026, the US Embassy and Consulates in Pakistan list $185 for a non-petition-based nonimmigrant visa in a fee schedule revised with effect from 13 April 2026. The F-1 falls in that category. The Embassy’s nonimmigrant visa page says the receipt is valid for 365 days from payment, and you only need to book the interview within that period. The Embassy adds that visa fees are non-refundable and non-transferable.

A 2025 US law created a separate visa integrity fee. No official page checked on 15 September 2026 confirmed that it is collected in Pakistan, so no figure is given here. Check the State Department’s fees page before paying it. USCIS filing fees for later steps, such as OPT, change often, so check them when you reach that stage.

What does the DS-160 ask, and how do you book the interview?

The DS-160 is the online visa application on the Consular Electronic Application Center. It asks about your identity, education, family, travel and any earlier refusals. Your school, programme and dates must match your I-20. Treat it as a sworn statement.

Social media identifiers and public accounts

US embassies, including the US Embassy in Mali, state that applicants must list all social media usernames or handles for every platform used in the last five years, and that omitting them could lead to a refusal and ineligibility for future visas. Students have a second step. As of 15 September 2026, the US Embassy in Pakistan instructs F, M and J applicants, among others, to set all social media accounts to public for vetting. Do this before your interview.

Booking in Islamabad or Karachi

According to the US Embassy’s nonimmigrant visa page, scheduling, fee collection and document delivery in Pakistan are handled by the contractor CGI through USTravelDocs. The Embassy in Islamabad and the Consulate General in Karachi both interview student applicants. The page says both posts prioritise student and exchange visitor visas, F and J.

Since 11 August 2025, nonimmigrant visa applicants in Pakistan generally need an in-person interview, including children under 14 and adults over 79. The waiver described on the Embassy page covers certain B1/B2 renewals only, so plan on attending. Check the State Department’s visa wait times tool for both posts before you choose a date.

The Foreign Affairs Manual says a student who wants to travel more than 30 days before the programme start date needs a different visa category. Some cases also need administrative processing after the interview. The Embassy says most are resolved within 60 days, so do not leave the interview until the last month.

How do you prepare for the F-1 interview and section 214(b)?

Section 214(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act presumes that every applicant is an intending immigrant until they establish, to the satisfaction of the consular officer, that they qualify for nonimmigrant status. The F-1 is covered by that presumption. The burden sits with you, and the interview is where you meet it.

What the officer is assessing

The Foreign Affairs Manual requires a student to have a residence abroad, no immediate intention of abandoning it, and an intention to leave when the approved studies end. It tells officers to look at present intent, and accepts that young applicants may not have a long-range plan. You do not need a ten-year career map. You do need a believable reason for this course, at this school, paid for with this money.

Language matters too. If your I-20 shows that English proficiency is required and no arrangement has been made for a shortfall, the manual says the interview must be conducted in English. Practise answering in English at the level your course demands.

How to prepare well

• Know why this course. Link it to what you studied in Pakistan and to the work it prepares you for.
• Explain the choice of university. Mention specific modules, research groups or funding, not rankings you read online.
• Understand your funding in detail. Know who pays, from what income, and how that matches the I-20 figures.
• Stay consistent. Every answer should match your DS-160, your I-20 and your documents.
• Declare the past honestly. If you were refused before, say so, and be ready to explain what has changed.

Bring your passport, signed I-20, SEVIS receipt, DS-160 confirmation, transcripts, test scores and original financial documents in one ordered folder. Mock interviews help because they expose questions you have not thought through. Memorised speeches tend to fall apart at the first follow-up.

What changed on 15 September 2026, and how long can you stay?

Before 15 September 2026, F-1 students were admitted for “duration of status”, with no fixed end date while they kept studying lawfully. A final rule from the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Register document 2026-14439, published on 17 July 2026, replaces that with a fixed period of admission for F students, J exchange visitors and I media representatives. Its stated effective date is 15 September 2026.

What the fixed period means for new students

Under the new regulation, an F-1 student is admitted for the period needed to complete the course on the Form I-20, up to a maximum of 4 years. You may be admitted up to 30 days before the programme start date. After the end date, you get 30 days to leave or take steps to keep lawful status. Neither 30-day period counts towards the 4-year maximum. F-2 dependants cannot be admitted for longer than the principal student.

SEVP’s FAQ on the rule says the admit-until date on your Form I-94 is the last day you are authorised to stay. Check it online after every entry. The rule’s explanation says that people who remain beyond a fixed period will generally start accruing unlawful presence, which can affect every future US application.

If you need more time

Many PhDs take longer than four years. If your programme runs past your admit-until date, or you move on to OPT, SEVP says you can apply to USCIS for an extension of stay on Form I-539. With a valid visa, you may instead travel and seek a new admission period from CBP on return. The rule lists grounds for extra time, such as compelling academic or medical reasons. Delays caused by academic probation do not qualify.

The grace period after your course

The 60-day grace period many students still talk about has changed. For students admitted under the new rule, the regulation allows 30 days after the programme end date, the 4-year limit, or the end of approved OPT. If a school official authorises you to withdraw from classes, you have 15 days to leave. If you fail to maintain status, you get no departure period at all.

Students already in the United States under duration of status on 15 September 2026, and properly maintaining it, are covered by transition rules. They may stay until the later of their I-20 programme end date or their work authorisation end date. That is capped at 4 years from 15 September 2026, plus a 60-day departure period, which the rule puts at 14 November 2030.

Can you work while you study, and what are CPT and OPT?

F-1 status is for study, and the work rules are strict. According to ICE’s employment guidance, you may work on campus up to 20 hours a week while school is in session, and full time during breaks and the annual vacation. Study in the States repeats the 20-hour limit. On-campus pay rarely covers tuition, so do not build your funding plan around it.

Curricular Practical Training

CPT is work that forms an integral part of your curriculum, such as a required internship or cooperative placement. SEVP says you normally need to have been enrolled full time for a full academic year first, although graduate programmes that require earlier training are an exception. A school official must authorise it in SEVIS before you start. Part time means 20 hours a week or less. One year of full-time CPT removes your eligibility for OPT.

Optional Practical Training and the STEM extension

As of 15 September 2026, USCIS says eligible F-1 students can receive up to 12 months of OPT, before or after completing their studies, and any time used before completion reduces what is left afterwards. For post-completion OPT, you may apply up to 90 days before you finish, no later than 60 days after, and within 30 days of your school official entering the recommendation in SEVIS. You file Form I-765 with USCIS.

Graduates with an eligible STEM degree may apply for a 24-month STEM OPT extension. USCIS says the employer must be enrolled in E-Verify, and you must submit a Form I-983 training plan. Apply up to 90 days before your current OPT ends and within 60 days of the school’s recommendation. The extension adds 60 days of permitted unemployment, for 150 days in total across OPT.

Under the new rule, a student recommended for post-completion OPT must apply for work authorisation and either extend their stay or seek a new admission after travel. Students already here under duration of status who file for OPT or STEM OPT by 18 March 2027 do not need a separate Form I-539.

What should you do after a 214(b) student visa refusal?

A 214(b) refusal means the officer was not satisfied that you qualify for the F-1, often on funding, study plans or intent to return. The State Department’s standard refusal letter says the decision cannot be appealed, but you may reapply at any time. You submit a new application and photo, pay the fee again and attend a new interview.

The question is what will be different next time. If the refusal came from weak funding, strengthen the evidence and its source. If your answers about the course were thin, rethink the plan itself, not the wording. I tell students not to rebook within days of a refusal unless they can say, in one sentence, what has changed. The guide to student visa refusals sets out how to work through the reasons, and the comparison of study destinations can help if the USA is no longer the right fit.

How do you apply, step by step?

1. 1

   Shortlist SEVP-certified schools and apply

   Check every university on the official Study in the States school search. Apply about a year before your intake, with transcripts, English test results and a funding plan that matches the published cost of attendance.

2. 2

   Prove your funding and receive the Form I-20

   Send the school the bank statements, sponsor letters and scholarship letters it asks for. Once your funds equal or exceed the estimated expenses, the school issues your I-20. Check your name, programme, dates and costs carefully.

3. 3

   Pay the $350 I-901 SEVIS fee

   Pay on the official SEVP payment site using the SEVIS ID and school code on your I-20. Print the confirmation, because you must show proof of payment at your visa interview.

4. 4

   Complete the DS-160 and set social media to public

   Fill in the DS-160 on the Consular Electronic Application Center. List every social media handle used in the last five years, declare any earlier refusal, and set your accounts to public as the US Embassy asks F applicants to do.

5. 5

   Pay the $185 fee and book through USTravelDocs

   Pay the visa application fee on USTravelDocs, the official scheduling service for Pakistan, and book an interview at the Embassy in Islamabad or the Consulate General in Karachi. The receipt stays valid for 365 days for booking.

6. 6

   Attend the F-1 interview

   Bring your passport, signed I-20, SEVIS fee receipt, DS-160 confirmation, academic records and original financial documents. Explain your course, your funding and your plans briefly and in your own words.

7. 7

   Travel within the 30-day arrival window

   Enter no more than 30 days before the programme start date on your I-20, carry the signed I-20 in your hand luggage, and check the admit-until date on your electronic I-94 after you arrive.

What goes wrong most often?

Applying to a school without checking certification

Some students pay fees to institutions that cannot issue an I-20. Check the SEVP school search first, and be wary of anyone who promises easy admission with no academic requirements.

Funds that do not add up

A sudden deposit from a relative invites hard questions. So does a sponsor whose tax returns show a small income, or statements that fall short of the first-year figure on the I-20. The officer compares your money with the form.

Social media left off or kept private

Missing an old account on the DS-160, or ignoring the Embassy’s instruction to set accounts to public, creates an avoidable problem. Declare every handle from the last five years.

Ignoring the new admission rules

Students who assume the old 60-day grace period still applies, or who miss the admit-until date on their I-94, can fall out of status without meaning to. Read your I-94 after every entry and diary the date.

Paying someone who promises a visa

No agent can influence a consular officer. Anyone who promises a result or suggests invented documents puts your record at risk. Read how to check a visa consultant in Pakistan before you pay anyone, and see how we work for what honest support looks like.

A realistic example

This is a hypothetical student, invented to illustrate the process. It is not a real client or a real case.

Hamza Iqbal is 23 and lives in Faisalabad. He finished a BS in computer science with a strong CGPA and wants a two-year MS in data science, starting in the autumn. His father runs a registered textile trading business with an NTN and filed FBR returns, and the family has saved steadily for three years.

The autumn before, Hamza sits his English test and checks each university on the SEVP school search. He applies in December and receives an offer with a partial scholarship. He sends his father’s bank statements, tax returns and a sponsor letter. His I-20 shows first-year costs, the scholarship and the family funds covering the rest. He pays the $350 SEVIS fee, completes the DS-160 with every handle, sets his accounts to public, pays the $185 fee and books an Islamabad interview for June.

At the interview he explains why the course follows from his degree, how his father’s business pays for the second year, and what data roles exist in Pakistan’s textile and banking sectors. After the visa is issued, he books a flight for 20 days before his programme starts and checks his I-94 after arrival. It shows an admit-until date 30 days after the programme end date on his I-20.

The version that goes wrong. The same student applies to a cheap online “university” without checking certification, borrows PKR 5,000,000 from a cousin a week before the interview to “show funds”, leaves an old account off the DS-160, and tells the officer he mainly wants to find work in America. Each step is avoidable, and together they give the officer little reason to be satisfied under 214(b). If he also plans a short family trip first, the US visit visa guide explains why a visitor visa cannot be used to study.

Key takeaways

Frequently asked questions