What is a SEVIS Fee?
The Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) fee is paid by international students to support the United States of America consulates and defray the cost for machine-readable visas. The I-901 SEVIS fee is additional students pay at their country's U.S consulates. The non-refundable fee is a one-time fee required before you move to the States.
Who Pays the I-901 SEVIS Fee?
Prospective F and M students from countries, U.S visa is mandatory.
Prospective F and M students from visa waiver countries.
Non-immigrant in the United States applying for a change of nonimmigrant status to F-1 or M-1 status
F or M students applying for reinstatement of student status due to a violation of status.
F or M students absent from the United States for more than five months and wishes to re-enter the country to return for further study in the same course of study.
How to Pay for I-901 SEVIS Fee
Methods of Payment
Online:
You can use U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement FMJFEE.com. However, citizens of the Cameroon, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria cannot use the online method. They can pay by certified check drawn from a United States’ bank, Western Union Quick Pay, or money order
Complete the online form (I-901) correctly.
Enter your name as it appears on your I-20 or DS-2019.
Enter your SEVIS ID number on your I-20 or DS-2019
Print the online receipt after payment.
Western Union
The payment instructions can be found on Western Union payment at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Pay4Me
Pay4Me is for paying travel-related fees and education fees in any part of the world. It can be downloaded on the Google Play Store or iOS App Store. The five African countries listed above can make use of this app for the payment of their SEVIS fee.
To pay for the SEVIS fee on the app, you should do the following:
Click on Make Payments
Click on I-901 SEVIS Fee
Select your destination currency
Enter transaction amount
Confirm and Proceed
Make your Payment
Print a Receipt
You may not get your student visa if do not present proof of your I-901 SEVIS Fee payment at your visa interview. You present the receipt with your visa application at the U.S. consulate and the U.S. Port of entry.
This proof of payment is your printed confirmation after payment. You can request corrections if you notice misspellings on your I-901 SEVIS Fee. The process could take a considerable amount of time due to the high volume of fee transfers and change requests.
Candidates should apply a minimum of two weeks before their visa interview.
The SEVIS ID on your payment confirmation receipt should match the SEVIS ID on your current F-1 I-20 or J-1 DS-2019. Students should keep extra copies of this payment confirmation receipt throughout their stay in the United States.
Finally, you should also carry the receipt with you during any future travel into the United States.
