SEVIS I-901 Fee Frequently Asked Questions

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2. What is the purpose of the sevis I-901 fee?

2.A. What is the primary purpose of the SEVIS I-901 fee?

2.B. What is the difference between a SEVIS I-901 fee and a school SEVIS administration fee?

2.C. How do I know if the school/exchange visitor program paid my SEVIS I-901 fee?

2.D. Does the SEVIS I-901 fee replace the visa fee?

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2.A. What is the primary purpose of the SEVIS I-901 fee?

The SEVIS I-901 fee is mandated by Congress to support the program office and the automated system that keeps track of students and exchange visitors and ensures that they maintain their status while in the United States. Each student or exchange visitor issued an initial Form I-20 or DS-2019 on after September 1, 2004 is responsible for paying this fee to SEVP. There are some exceptions. For more information, see the section, Do I pay the fee?

The fee is used to:

• Maintain and update SEVIS
• Hire and train SEVIS Liaison Officers
• Staff and manage the SEVP Office to:
• Support the current version of SEVIS and continue to add enhancements
• Develop SEVP policies and procedures
• Offer SEVIS-related training, assistance and problem resolution to the schools and exchange visitor program sponsors
• Maintain enforcement oversight to ensure that:
• Schools and exchange visitor program sponsors are maintaining accurate, timely information
• Students or exchange visitors who fail to maintain status either leave the United States or apply for reinstatement

2.B. What is the difference between a SEVIS I-901 fee and a school SEVIS administration fee?

Some schools charge a fee by the year or the semester to support their foreign student/exchange visitor office and automated systems. These fees are neither mandated nor collected by the U.S. government.

If you paid a foreign student fee to your school and are not sure if it was the SEVIS I-901 fee paid to SEVP, contact an official at your school or exchange visitor program.

For more information see What is the primary purpose of the SEVIS I-901 fee?

2.C. How do I know if the school/exchange visitor program paid my SEVIS I-901 fee?

Schools and exchange visitor program sponsors have the option of paying the SEVIS I-901 fee for prospective students or exchange visitors, but are not required to pay the fee.

You must ask a DSO at your school or the RO at your exchange visitor program to find out if the SEVIS I-901 fee has been paid for you. If the fee is paid on your behalf, you should receive a receipt from whoever paid the SEVIS I-901 fee for you. See the section on receipts for how to verify payment has been made and how to order a copy of the receipt.

Some schools or exchange visitor program sponsors may charge an institutional fee that supports their costs for administering SEVIS. However, these fees are not paid to the SEVP. If your school or exchange visitor program charges a SEVIS Fee, check to see who the fee goes to. When a school or exchange visitor program pays the fee to SEVP on your behalf, they will send you a copy of the receipt. If the fee does not go to SEVP, you are still required to pay the SEVIS I-901 fee.

2.D. Does the SEVIS I-901 fee replace the visa fee?

No. The visa fee is to defray the cost for machine-readable visas and to support the consulates. There is a separate non-refundable fee for anyone seeking a nonimmigrant visa for the United States.

The SEVIS I-901 fee is a separate fee paid to SEVP. This fee supports the Student and Exchange Visitor Program in DHS. See What is the primary purpose of the SEVIS I-901 fee?