The ISSO is responsible for issuing I-20 and DS-2019 Certificates of Eligibility to students who have been admitted to a UCSF academic program or students requesting an extension of their program end date.
To issue a new or extended I-20 or DS-2019, we are required by law to verify that each student has sufficient funds to cover the requested period of their stay in the United States.
How the Minimum Required Funding is Calculated
We calculate the required amount of funds by adding the estimated amount of UCSF tuition, fees, and equipment for your academic program (published on the UCSF Registrar’s website) with the estimated cost of living for a student in San Francisco (published on the UCSF Student Financial Services website). The resulting total is the amount of funding you must provide evidence of when applying for your initial or extension certificate of eligibility.
Length of Funding
F-1 Visa Requirements
Per 9 FAM 402.5-5(G)(1), F-1 students must show funding for at least 1 academic year or the length of their program (whichever is shorter). However, the ISSO expects F-1 to have sufficient funds to cover the entire period of stay in the U.S..
J-1 Visa Requirements
22 C.F.R 62.12 (b)(1)(ii-iii), J-1 students must show funding for the entire length of their program. Please review your academic program’s average time to degree to calculate the total length of your program if you will request a J-1 DS-2019.
Funding for Dependents
If you plan to be accompanied by any dependents, such as a spouse and or children, additional funding will be required. Please add $4,500 per year ($375 per month) for each dependent who will accompany you while you are at UCSF.
Acceptable Proof of Funds
The following table outlines the different type of funding categories the ISSO will accept as part of your initial or extension student visa application. All documentation must follow the requirements stated below. You may provide a combination of funding documents as part of your application.
ISSO retains discretion on what documents we will accept as evidence of funds, and we may request additional financial documents to verify the availability of funds.
UCSF Program Funding
(Program Funding Letter, Program Scholarships, GSR appointment letters, fellowships, grants, etc.)
Required Documentation for New Students
Your official departmental funding letter. This letter should outline the financial package that you have been offered, including support for your UCSF tuition and fees, as well as the amount of stipend you have been offered.
Required Documentation for Extending Students
A letter from either your program administrator or PI outlining what support you are receiving from your program or lab, such as tuition and fees, and the amounts of any stipend or salary you are receiving. A GSR appointment letter is acceptable, but you must include a separate letter to confirm any tuition and fee support if such support is not discussed in the appointment letter.
Funding Letter Requirements
- Printed on official UCSF or Academic Program letterhead
- Signed by either your Program Administrator or PI (if using PI funds)
- Issue within the last 6 months
- Clearly state the amount of funding, length of funding and type of funding
- Signed by hand or using Docusign. Typed names are not accepted in place of a signature.
Personal Funds
(Financial documents that are in the student's name)
Required Documentation
- Should indicate your financial institution's name
- Should indicate your name as the account holder
- Clearly show the account’s available balance
- Clearly show the type of currency
- Must be dated within 3 months of submission
- Should have a signature or/and stamp, with logo or/and letterhead by the financial institution
- Be translated into English, unofficial translations are accepted
- Be from statements that show liquid assets that are immediately accessible
Additional Details
- Screenshots of your bank account are not accepted.
- Should be a single page document meeting the above criteria. DO NOT submit transaction history.
- Showing bank/financial statements from multiple accounts is acceptable
- Should be converted to U.S. dollars using an online currency converter (such as XE.com, Google, etc.) Attach a screenshot showing both currency values.
Private Sponsor
(Financial statements in the names of parents, families, or friends, etc.)
Required Documentation
- The sponsor’s bank or financial statements, AND
- A Guarantee of Financial Support (GFS) - Private Sponsors form completed and signed by your sponsor
- Sponsor’s signature on the GFS must be in one of the following formats:
- Handwritten or hand-drawn signature using cursor or touch screen
- Adobe signatures
- Docusign signatures
Requirements for bank statements
- Should indicate the financial institution's name
- Should indicate the account holder's name
- Clearly show the account’s available balance
- Clearly show the type of currency
- Must be dated within 3 months of submission
- Should have a signature or/and stamp, with logo or/and letterhead by the financial institution
- Be translated into English (especially names), unofficial translations are accepted
- Be from statements that show liquid assets that are immediately accessible
- DO NOT submit statements that include transaction history
Loan Certificates/Letters
(Educational loan in your name)
You must submit an official loan approval letter meeting the following criteria:
- Must indicate the student's full name, the amount and the disbursement period of approved loan (the disbursement period should overlap with the student’s program dates).
- Must provide proof of acceptance of the loan offer (e.g. a signature of the applicant agreeing to the terms and conditions or a payment receipt of an origination fee).
- Conditional loan approvals may be accepted only if the only condition is the receipt of your I-20 or DS-2019.
- Must be dated within 3 months of submission
Note
Loan applications are NOT accepted as proof of funding
The following types of funding are NOT accepted
- Documents older than 3 months from the date of submission (except for UCSF Funding Letters)
- Bank statements with a maturity date that is after the program start date
- Income or salary statements (except UCSF Employment Verification)
- Funds that are not immediately accessible
- Transactional receipt
- Assets that are not in liquidated form (house, car, jewelry, etc.)
- Life insurance policy statements
- Pension and retirement funds
- Tax return forms or documents