International Student & Scholar Services

The Presidential Proclamation on October 25, 2021 stated that starting November 8, 2021, nonimmigrant travelers are required to be fully vaccinated with a FDA- or WHO-approved vaccine in order to enter the United States. 

There are some exceptions to this requirement, including:

• Persons on diplomatic or official foreign government travel
• Children under 18 years of age
• Persons with documented medical contraindications to receiving a COVID-19 vaccine
• Participants in certain COVID-19 vaccine trials
• Persons issued a humanitarian or emergency exception
• Persons with valid visas (excluding B-1 (business) or B-2 (tourism) visas) who are citizens of a foreign country with limited COVID-19 vaccine availability
• Members of the U.S. Armed Forces or their spouses or children (under 18 years of age)
• Sea crew members traveling with a C-1 and D nonimmigrant visa
• Persons whose entry would be in the national interest, as determined by the Secretary of State, Secretary of Transportation, or Secretary of Homeland Security (or their designees)

Additional information on the Presidential Proclamation can be found on the White House Fact Sheet.

Technical Instructions from the CDC (includes the list of accepted COVID-19 vaccines) 

Please refer to our ISSS Travel Checklist for information on what you need to prepare in order to re-enter the United States. 

You must also understand that the additional documentation you must show will be based on your vaccination status.  Please review the CDC Requirements for Air Passengers as well as the CDC Find out if you can board a flight to the U.S. page.

Additional U.S. Department of State information can be found in the FAQs on the department's International Travel page.

Continuing F-1 or J-1 students are students who have previously entered the United States and have maintained their immigration status. U.S. Immigration will continue to allow flexibility during the COVID-19 pandemic for continuing F-1 and J-1 students to maintain their immigration status. The New School will continue to operate mostly in person but continuing students must understand the following:

• You must continue to be enrolled full-time in order to maintain your status.
• You may enroll fully online and remain in or outside the United States. 
• You may enroll full-time with a combination of in-person and online classes. With U.S. immigration COVID flexibility, there is no limit on the number of online classes a student can take.  
• You should review the International Student Travel Checklist if you plan to travel to the United States.

ISSS will provide students with additional information through detailed email notifications, Zoom live advising sessions, updates on the ISSS website, and @ISSSNewSchool Instagram posts.

• We continue to operate primarily remotely in the fall.
• Temporary front desk hours are Mondays and Fridays, 9:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m., and Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 1:00-5:00 p.m. The front desk is closed on Thursdays for processing. 
• The main phone line, 212.229.5592, is operational.
• For virtual advising by phone or Zoom, make an appointment through Starfish. Please contact us if you cannot make the appointment, so that the time slot can be made available to other students. 
• Virtual Drop-In Hours are Tuesdays from 2:00 to 3:30 p.m.—register here.
• All processing requests can be made through iGlobal.
• All workshops and/or Live Advising Sessions will be held online through Zoom and are advertised on our Instagram and in our newsletters.

NAFSA: Association for International Educators is the world's largest nonprofit association dedicated to international education and exchange. Please visit the NAFSA webpage for information on the Biden administration's executive actions and priorities related to international education and immigration.