Documents FOR student visa 

Congratulations on your acceptance to Florida Atlantic University! We are excited to welcome you to the the Florida Atlantic family. To get started, please review the following steps to complete your onboarding process as an international student. 

Obtain the Certificate of Eligibility for F1/J1 Visa

All international students studying in the U.S. must obtain either:

  • Form I-20 - Certificate of Eligibility for F1 non-immigrant visa, or
  • DS-2019 - Certificate of Eligibility for J1 non-immigrant visa.

To begin the process of requesting an I-20/DS-2019, students must first activate their MyFAU account. Please note that your FAU Net ID and your Z number are required to activate your account. You should receive an Welcome email from the ISS office with your login information. If you did not receive this email, please contact us at isss@fau.edu. 

**Please click here for instruction on how to activate MyFAU account**

Steps to request an I-20/DS-2019

  1. Submit the  Passport eForm   to begin the I-20/DS-2019 request. 
  2. Submit the Request for I-20/DS-2019 eForm along with proof of fudning (view funding details here).
  3. If you are transferring from another U.S. Institution, submit the   SEVIS Transfer In Request eForm in additional to the two forms above. 
  4. Register for a mandatory  Immigration Orientation and Check-in.  
  5. Undergraduate students also need to complete all the additional steps the OwlDone Portal to be able to register for classes!

**Please click here for information on how to access eForms in iStart**

 

Deadlines to Submit Documents for I-20

Semester

I-20 Request and Documents
 Recommended Deadline 

Semester Begins
Spring 2026 Nov 28 Jan 10
Summer 2026 April 3 May 16
Fall 2026 July 10 August 22

*Requests submitted after the recommended deadline will be processed on a case by case basis. 

 

Receiving of I-20 or DS-2019

All the I-20/DS-2019s will be issued electronically and will consist of electronic signature which is officially accepted per Department of State to apply for visa and/or at the entry to the United States (Executive Order 14012).

You may request immigration documents to be shipped to you through express mail in  YOUR expense. Methods of payment include Credit/Debit Card (Visa, MasterCard, Amex and Discover) and Wire Transfer. The accepted currency is US Dollars. Parents or friends of the student can pay with their credit card on behalf of the student as well.

How to request EXPRESS mail to send you your immigration documents:

  1. Visit  https://study.eshipglobal.com/
  2. Create a user name and password to set up an account.
  3. Click the "Receive a Package" option.
  4. Select the "Florida Atlantic University Center for Global Engagement" as as your sender and enter your Z number in the student ID field.
  5. Prepare a shipment request and pay the mailing cost online.
  6. eShipGlobal will route the request to FAU ISS office and the ISS office will prepare the shippment.

If you have questions about how to use this service please, visit the FAQs section of on  https://study.eshipglobal.com, or email to  student.support@eshipglobal.com.  Please pay close attention to the information submitted as errors in the credit card or incomplete address information will result in a delay in receiving your I-20 or DS-2019.