J-1 Visa Documents

Deeper look into the DS-2019, DS-7002, and I-901 (SEVIS fee receipt).

Dec 1, 2022

After your visa sponsor has reviewed your application and finished working with your host company to get all the necessary information about your internship/training position (i.e. address of company, contacts, manager information, salary, training plan, relevant skills to be learned), they will produce 3 documents: DS-2019, DS-7002, and I-901 (SEVIS fee receipt). These documents are then used to support an application for your J-1 visa.

DS-2019

Form DS-2019, titled “Certificate of Eligibility for Exchange Visitor (J-1) Status” is a document controlled by the Department of State that can only be produced through the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), which is a database used by the Department of State to track and monitor nonimmigrant exchange visitors in the F, M, and J visa classifications. Here’s the official website from the Department of State.

The DS-2019 is the basic document used to support an application for an exchange visitor visa (J-1). It is a 2-page document:

Page 1: Displays all the information, which the participant is required to sign
Page 2: Displays the instructions and certification language relating to participation in the exchange program

Blank SEVIS forms do not exist. Each DS-2019 is printed with a unique identifier in the top-right hand corner known as a SEVIS ID number, which consists of an alphabetical character and up to 11 numerical characters.

Breakdown

Block 1 identifies the participant’s basic information, the position code, and the address of the activity site. Ensure that this address is correct – any changes before of during the training period will require a new DS-2019 with the new address reflected.

Block 2 identifies the visa sponsor. This will most likely be either Cultural Vistas or Intrax.

Block 3 identifies the beginning and end dates of the program. Block 4 identifies the Exchange Visitor Category, which is most likely going to be INTERN or TRAINEE. The full list of categories can be found here.

Block 5 provides a breakout of the total estimated financial support to be provided to the participant during their program. This will include personal funds and how much you’re expected to make as an intern over this period (if it’s a paid internship). This is where the recommended $3000 USD minimum personal funds comes in. Although not explicitly stated, it’s recommended to have a reasonable amount of personal funds to justify being able to live in the US for the period of the program. These funds can be in the form of:

Bank statements showing reasonable savings
Scholarships, fellowships, assistantships
Official letter of sponsorship from a government, company, or organization

Blocks 6, 7, and 8 identify the visa sponsor’s responsible officer along with their name, signature, telephone number, and address. You must have a DS-2019 with an original signature here, either physically or digitally.

At the very bottom, you must provide a signature, place of signing, and date. Likewise, you must have a DS-2019 with an original signature here when applying for your J-1 visa.

DS-7002

Form DS-7002, titled “Training/Internship Placement Plan” is a document controlled by the Department of State used only for Exchange Visitors under the INTERN or TRAINEE categories to outline their program’s activities, goals/objectives of the program, what kinds of knowledge/skills are expected to be learned by the participant, a detailed list of all relevant contacts (i.e. managers, mentors), and how their performance will be measured. Your visa sponsor will work closely with your host company to fill this out.

It is a 5-page document, and the blank can be found here.

Breakdown

Page 1 is for basic personal information about the participant, the host company, and signature from the participant. Most of the information will already be pre-filled by the visa sponsor based on the information you provided them when they first sent you an application to fill out your details.

Page 2 indicates the instructions and certification language to be acknowledged by the visa sponsor’s responsible officer.

Page 3 is the beginning of the training/internship plan. The visa sponsor will work together with your host company to get an outline of your program, goals and objectives, and contact information of all those involved in supervising your program like a manager or mentor.

Page 4 requires more information such as how cultural exchange will transpire, what skills/knowledge you’ll be expected to acquire, and how those skills skills/knowledge are to be taught and measured.

Page 5 is the last page, which is to be signed by your future manager/supervisor at your host company.

I-901

Form I-901, almost always referred to as the SEVIS fee receipt, which indicates payment confirmation of the SEVIS fee, a mandatory fee when applying for a J-1 visa. For context, this fee is used to fund the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) and SEVIS. Here is the FAQ from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

This fee is around $180-220, but this can change over time. This fee is paid by the host company. In the unlikely event that it’s not and you need to cover it yourself, your visa sponsor will send you instructions on how to pay it directly on the DHS website here.

Breakdown

It’s a 1-page document, and is not very complicated. Ensure that the name is correct, status is J-1, and that the program number and SEVIS ID number match up with those on the DS-2019.