Declaring a Dependent

Students or scholars in F1 or J1 visa status can apply to bring a dependent spouse or child under the age of 21 to the U.S. in F2 or J2 status. Please ensure that you have all of your dependent’s required information prior to submitting your application.

F-1 or J-1 Students Declaring Dependents

  • Declaring a Dependent Application – This application is through the ISSO Connect international student portal. You must login with your NinerNet credentials.
  • Upload proof of financial support – The amount of funding you must show varies on the type and number of dependents you are requesting.
    • $6000 for a dependent spouse
    • $3600 for each dependent child
  • Biographical documents – You must upload a copy of the passport biographical page for each dependent requested.
  • Up to 10 business day processing time – An I-20 or DS-2019 will then be created for your dependent(s) after you submit the application. Please allow the ISSO 10 business days to complete your request.

Visiting scholars declaring dependents

  • Dependent Request PDF Application – Please submit the completed pdf application and the required supporting documents to the ISSO Scholar Advisor.
  • Attach proof of financial support – The amount of funding you must show varies on the type and number of dependents you are requesting.
    • $8400 per year ($700/month) for a dependent spouse
    • $4800 per year ($400/month) for a dependent child
  • Biographical documents – You should include copies of passport biographical pages for each dependent requested.

Processing time notice: Please be advised that the ISSO serves nearly 2,000 enrolled international students, in addition to over 1,000 prospective students and students on OPT and STEM OPT. We appreciate your patience in allowing us to process each student’s submission in a timely manner according to the order in which we receive requests in our queue.