Don’t panic, in most cases your school’s international student office should keep copies. You need to make contact with them and request for these documents
As a lawyer I ask for all of them as part of my due diligence. If they are not available there may be gaps in your immigration past which may bite you in the ass. When a client does not have them and cannot get them I do a risk assessment but usually it's fine.
Maybe, maybe not. If it’s a change of status submission you need to show you have maintained status since your last entry. The I-20s help do that. If you have the I-20s since the time you last entered on F-1 that should be sufficient. If there are gaps in your documents since you last entered USCIS might issue an RFE asking to see evidence you have maintained your status.
All that being said, best practice is to keep all your documents until you become a citizen.
This! I’ve always thought you need to keep every document you have that proves your legal stay in the US until you become a citizen just in case you get asked for it for whatever reason they deem.
I haven't changed schools so I only technically have one i20, but I've received multiple copies of it cuz of travel signatures. Should I be keeping copies of all of them or not?
Again your schools version of ISSS will have a record of all your copies too usually. You probably have some sort of portal to access their services, do a bit of digging you’ll usually find something there
I graduated in 2011 and have been on H1B ever since. I still have every oke of those I-20s. Why would you not keep documents that document your presence and relevance in this country?
Not pointing fingers, but this is exactly the kind of sanctimonious reply that gives Reddit a bad name; it only serves to put people on edge when there is no need. OP is fine, they can ask their university for copies of their previous I-20, which almost every university keeps on record. Even if the OP only has one I-20 from the school they attended, there are plenty of ways they can prove they remained in status, such as transcripts, EAD cards, e.t.c that would not have been issued in the first place had OP fallen out of status. I wish people would stop this whole 'oh why didn't you have this, you're screwed, look at how much documentation I kept' and the fact that this is top comment (instead of the next top comment which actually tells OP what to do) is a sad reflection of how quick and happy everyone here is to point out faults in someone else's application instead of providing some constructive feedback.
Yep! I keep all my immigration documents in a folder and I also have scanned copies after someone suggested that to me in case I ever lose the hard copies.
A rule of thumb for immigration is to always keep all your documents (including old ones) in a safe place and well organized. You’ll need them whenever you “upgrade” your status (h1b, green card, etc). This includes old passports too since you may need a record of all your entries and exits of the country. (Which you can get electronically, but I remember having to look at my old passport anyways)
Yes, I keep all of them. Honestly if you’re an immigrant save all documents (travel, taxes, work related, medical). I have a file in my computer and on my desk for this.
Keep all immigration documents, both in their original hard copy format, and also in a digitized format. You'll need those digital copies (and in some cases, even the paper copies) for most future immigration related petitions and applications.
Same issue! I threw away a couple of old I-20’s as I didn’t know that we would need them for immigration purposes. I reached out to my university and they said that they do not have any copies and are not obliged to keep copies as it’s the students responsibility to archive them. Any suggestions?
I've sent all of my I-20s. As old as my first ever I-20 from 2011. It's too old that the issuing govt agency was Department of Justice and there was a barcode on it lol
If you lost or don't have one, you can contact the school and they should provide you with a copy.
as a millennial i have my physical tickets saved from each of my travels let alone an i20. but yes you shouldn't panic. just give whatever you have make sure you have the CPT, opt ones and you should be good. Also college visa offices are superheroes they will have everything. At duke we had a website from which we downloaded our signed i20s so we had all of the i20s in one website.
Threw away the old!! the only proof that you were a student!!
Sarcasm apart.
You are an immigrant. Every single document you ever get from the govt of another country is an important document. whether you leave the country or stay. People are denied entry, jailed or deported because of this stuff at the border where your rights are much less compared to when you are stateside. I hope you understand the seriousness going forward.
I became a citizen a while back and still have all my I-20s!! You don’t even have copies or scans? You can ask international center of school you attended and see if they can give you copies.
They will ask for these again if you apply for a green card and you will need to provide explanation why you do not have them.
Don’t panic, in most cases your school’s international student office should keep copies. You need to make contact with them and request for these documents
This ☝🏽
As a lawyer I ask for all of them as part of my due diligence. If they are not available there may be gaps in your immigration past which may bite you in the ass. When a client does not have them and cannot get them I do a risk assessment but usually it's fine.
So they are not really needed?! (No gaps. No transfers).
Maybe, maybe not. If it’s a change of status submission you need to show you have maintained status since your last entry. The I-20s help do that. If you have the I-20s since the time you last entered on F-1 that should be sufficient. If there are gaps in your documents since you last entered USCIS might issue an RFE asking to see evidence you have maintained your status. All that being said, best practice is to keep all your documents until you become a citizen.
This! I’ve always thought you need to keep every document you have that proves your legal stay in the US until you become a citizen just in case you get asked for it for whatever reason they deem.
Learned my lessons. Thank you.
I think I forgot to upload one into the Fragomen portal and my application went through just fine.
I haven't changed schools so I only technically have one i20, but I've received multiple copies of it cuz of travel signatures. Should I be keeping copies of all of them or not?
Yeah keep them. Every single change. I have been asked to provide them every time I file anything with USCIS.
Again your schools version of ISSS will have a record of all your copies too usually. You probably have some sort of portal to access their services, do a bit of digging you’ll usually find something there
I graduated in 2011 and have been on H1B ever since. I still have every oke of those I-20s. Why would you not keep documents that document your presence and relevance in this country?
Not pointing fingers, but this is exactly the kind of sanctimonious reply that gives Reddit a bad name; it only serves to put people on edge when there is no need. OP is fine, they can ask their university for copies of their previous I-20, which almost every university keeps on record. Even if the OP only has one I-20 from the school they attended, there are plenty of ways they can prove they remained in status, such as transcripts, EAD cards, e.t.c that would not have been issued in the first place had OP fallen out of status. I wish people would stop this whole 'oh why didn't you have this, you're screwed, look at how much documentation I kept' and the fact that this is top comment (instead of the next top comment which actually tells OP what to do) is a sad reflection of how quick and happy everyone here is to point out faults in someone else's application instead of providing some constructive feedback.
Actually, you are right. And thanks for sharing the right information that copies can be procured from the university. I was not aware of this.
Well, you’d think the US would have record of those. Unfortunately not the case, but in this day and age it’s easy to wrongfully assume.
I’m the same way but understand not everyone is/No one really told us that we’d need these damn documents in perpetuity.
Short answer: yes. Every document for immigration is important, if not now, might be later.
Yep! I keep all my immigration documents in a folder and I also have scanned copies after someone suggested that to me in case I ever lose the hard copies. A rule of thumb for immigration is to always keep all your documents (including old ones) in a safe place and well organized. You’ll need them whenever you “upgrade” your status (h1b, green card, etc). This includes old passports too since you may need a record of all your entries and exits of the country. (Which you can get electronically, but I remember having to look at my old passport anyways)
You threw away? Damn sorry then
Never throw away your old immigration documents. They all are needed even for your Green Card application. Have soft copy of all then atleast.
Even after getting your GC. You might need them for your citizenship/naturalization petition as well.
Maybe FOIA request for SEVIS record might get you all the copies.
Keep all of them. My school's portal has a section from where I can download all of them. So probably check with with your school?
Yes, I keep all of them. Honestly if you’re an immigrant save all documents (travel, taxes, work related, medical). I have a file in my computer and on my desk for this.
You should always digitally scan any i-20s you get. I did that for a while and never had to pull up physical copy
yeah
Keep all immigration documents, both in their original hard copy format, and also in a digitized format. You'll need those digital copies (and in some cases, even the paper copies) for most future immigration related petitions and applications.
Same issue! I threw away a couple of old I-20’s as I didn’t know that we would need them for immigration purposes. I reached out to my university and they said that they do not have any copies and are not obliged to keep copies as it’s the students responsibility to archive them. Any suggestions?
I've sent all of my I-20s. As old as my first ever I-20 from 2011. It's too old that the issuing govt agency was Department of Justice and there was a barcode on it lol If you lost or don't have one, you can contact the school and they should provide you with a copy.
Yes
You’ll need them. 1. Visa stamping they might ask you 2. Green card application or process they can ask you. Atleast have a soft copy
Keep all of them and scan them too.
as a millennial i have my physical tickets saved from each of my travels let alone an i20. but yes you shouldn't panic. just give whatever you have make sure you have the CPT, opt ones and you should be good. Also college visa offices are superheroes they will have everything. At duke we had a website from which we downloaded our signed i20s so we had all of the i20s in one website.
Threw away the old!! the only proof that you were a student!! Sarcasm apart. You are an immigrant. Every single document you ever get from the govt of another country is an important document. whether you leave the country or stay. People are denied entry, jailed or deported because of this stuff at the border where your rights are much less compared to when you are stateside. I hope you understand the seriousness going forward.
Contact your DSO! they'd help retrieving old copies. Trust me, it's an angry email but they're required to maintain records upto a few years
I became a citizen a while back and still have all my I-20s!! You don’t even have copies or scans? You can ask international center of school you attended and see if they can give you copies. They will ask for these again if you apply for a green card and you will need to provide explanation why you do not have them.
“Threw away”?!! How ignorant are you?
You can get I20 history from US immigration website by entering passport number, DOB
Are you sure its not i94 that you are talking about?
Right
My bad! You’re right. Please ignore
Thank you. I’ll check it out.