For students who want to study in the US, getting their F1 visa is the biggest challenge. The whole process starts with booking your visa slot, which in itself is becoming hard. They often don’t get the slot because they don’t know the right steps to book an F1 visa slot. So, here are the details for what an F1 visa is, what a visa slot is, the requirements, and how to book the F1 visa slot.

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What Is An F1 Visa?

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F1 visa is the visa for foreign students need to apply for if they want to study in the USA. This is a non-immigrant visa, which means the visa holder has to go back to their original country after the visa period is over. To apply, you need an acceptance letter from a Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP)-approved institution in the USA and the visa period will depend on your course duration.

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F1 visa requirements

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Here is a detailed list of F1 visa slot booking requirements for Indian students wishing to study in the USA:

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• Acceptance letter from a Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP)-approved institution. This institute can be a university, college, elementary and secondary school, language training program, vocational and technical school, or seminary and religious training program.
• You need to be a student of a full-time course in any such institute.
• You must have strong ties to your own country. This shows you have an incentive to return to India after your course is complete.
• Proof of financial capability to sustain yourself during your stay in the USA for the whole course. Your finances should show you can cover your living costs, tuition fees, and other costs in the US on your own or through your sponsor.
• Proof that you are proficient in English.

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These are the requirements. To support your claim of fulfilling these requirements, you need to submit these documents:

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• Valid passport
• Completed form DS-160
• Two recent photographs meeting U.S. visa photo requirements
• F1 visa fee payment receipt
• Form I-20 from the SEVP institution
• Bank statements, financial statements or sponsor’s financial statements
• Previous education documents (transcripts, test scores, diplomas)
• Proof of health insurance for international students

What is a visa slot?

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Now that you know what is an F1 visa, let’s take a quick look at what is a visa slot. Visa slot refers to the appointment you need to make with concerned US authorities to be interviewed before your F1 visa is issued. The slots fill up quickly because the number of Indian students going to the US for study purposes keeps increasing every year. However, the number of US consulates and VAC ( Visa Application Centres) in India has not increased proportionally.

This is why the slots get filled up as soon as they are open, especially during the start of the academic year. You can apply for your US visa slot booking a maximum of 120 days before the start of your course in the US. The U.S. Visa Information and Appointment Services website will give information on whether slots are available or not so that you can make the booking as per your situation.

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What Has Changed For Indian Students Wishing To Book An F1 Visa Slot?

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Some changes were made regarding the F1 visa slot application process in November 2023. Here are the updates:

• Your passport details need to be entered when you create a profile or book an appointment.
• If you enter the wrong passport information, your application will be rejected. Your slot will be considered as an F1 refused slot, and you need to start from the beginning and the fee will be forfeited.
• If that happens, you need to create a new profile with the correct passport information.
• If you have an older profile with correct passport information, you can use that to schedule an appointment.
• You will need a new fee receipt if your old receipt is linked to the profile with the wrong passport information.

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Steps To Book A US Student Visa Appointment

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Here is a step-by-step guide on how to book US visa appointment in India.

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1. Apply for and get admitted to any SEVP-approved institute. Once you get accepted, the institute will send you a form called Form I-20 which you need to fill up.

2. Pay the form (Form I-901) fee at the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS). At present, the F1 SEVIS fee is $350 which comes to roughly about ₹29,100. You need the receipt from here to continue your F1 visa application.

3. The visa slot booking starts when you fill-up the DS-160 online application at the Consular Electronic Application Centre website. Follow the instructions and be sure to check the information you are entering. You will also have to upload a passport-size photo taken as per U.S. visa photo requirements (color, taken within 6 months, 2 x 2 inches or 51 x 51 mm, plain white or off-white background, neutral facial expression, normal street attire, JPEG format). Keep the confirmation number generated.

4. Create a profile on the U.S. Visa Information and Appointment Services website for India. As per the new rules, you need to apply with your original passport number. Pay the visa application fee, which is about $185, which comes to around ₹15,390. This is a non-refundable fee.

5. Once you have a profile, you select the “Schedule Appointment” option to get a US student visa appointment. There are two parts to it; one is at VAC (Visa Application Centre) where your biometrics and photo will be captured and the second is at your nearest US consulate or US embassy. You can book only when a slot is available. A confirmation will be generated which you need to produce, along with other documents when you go for the interview.

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So, these are the whole steps of booking an appointment for a US visa.

Conclusion

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Indian students were the second largest recipient of F1 visas in the US in the last two years. The acceptance rate for F1 visas in 2023 is approximately 63.74%, and the slots are quickly filled upon opening. Generally, the visa is approved if the documents presented are valid, and the interviewer is sure that you are going to the USA just to study and takes about 21 days.

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However, given the present workload of the consulates, the approval can take long. So, you need to plan ahead for your US visa slot booking, and constantly check the relevant website to see if new visa slots have been announced or not. This little guide on how to book F1 visa slot will help you if you find a slot that is open.