1. BU Wants Your Picture!
2. Special Recognition Photos from April 13 International Coffee Hour Now Posted
3. Tax Information Moved Off ISSS Home Page, CINTAX Still Available
4. Attention: Graduate Assistants and Teaching Assistants on the State Payroll and Other Students Who Work On-Campus
5. Last International Coffee Hour for This Academic Year Friday, May 4
6. Reminder About International Student Graduation Reception on May 12
7. Early Registration for Fall 2007 Ends May 11
8. Practical Training Update from the ISSS
9. Accessing Health Services, Library Services and Off Campus Bus Services During the Summer
10. U.S. Immigration Requirements If You are Leaving Binghamton Permanently
11. Latest H-1B Cap Count Update
12. Planning to Travel Outside the United States With a Child?

1. BU Wants Your Picture!

The Office of Enrollment Services is seeking photos of all students, both graduate and undergraduate for future photo and/or video shoots. So, if you are enjoying your experience at Binghamton, and are willing to share your story, research, academic activities, project, or tell why you chose Binghamton University, two times have been established for a quick head shot photo to be taken and for you to sign up in their registry. Go to the Lecture Hall Basement, Room B-39, on either Wednesday May 2 or Thursday May 3, between 2:00pm and 4:00pm. Easiest access to the Lecture Hall Basement is from the Student Wing, use the staircase near the exit doors past the Office of Student Accounts.

2. Special Recognition Photos from April 13 International Coffee Hour Now Posted

A special recognition ceremony was held at the April 13 International Coffee Hour, where the ISSS honored the eleven international student cultural associations who ISSS works with throughout the year. Those photos are now posted to the ISSS home page. The direct link is http://isss.binghamton.edu/prog/coffee_hour/index.html

Our thanks to Tushar Govani for taking the photos.

3. Tax Information Moved Off ISSS Home Page, CINTAX Still Available

The CINTAX web links, and the link to the Income Tax Web Workshops, have been removed from the ISSS home page http://isss.binghamton.edu

However, they can all be found in the tax section of the ISSS webpages at: http://isss.binghamton.edu/taxes/index.html

Remember, even though the tax filing deadline for tax year 2006 has passed, tax payers can still apply late. A penalty is assessed only if a person owes tax, not if a person had not US income or is entitled to a refund. CINTAX passwords are still available for late tax filers.

4. Attention: Graduate Assistants and Teaching Assistants on the State Payroll and Other Students Who Work On-Campus

Any graduate assistants or teaching assistants who are completing their studies this semester are reminded that it is critical that they provide the State Payroll Office (4 th floor Couper Administration Building) or the Research Foundation Payroll Office (ITC Building) with a permanent home address for the remainder of 2007 to insure that all W-2 forms for income received in 2007 can be mailed to the correct address next January 2008.

In addition, any hourly student workers on the State Payroll or other campus payrolls (such as Sodexho Dining Services) who are completing their studies this semester are also reminded to provide the Payroll Office (4 th floor Couper Administration Building), if you are on the New York State payroll, or the payroll office of any other campus employer with an address for the remainder of 2007, to insure that all W-2 forms for income received in 2007 can be mailed to the correct address next January.

5. Last International Coffee Hour for This Academic Year Friday, May 4

Good company! Free food! Hot and cold beverages! Celebrate May and the approaching end of the Spring semester by coming to this month's International Coffee Hour on Friday, May 4 from 3:30-5pm in the University Union Old Union Hall. This month's sponsor is the Watson School.

We look forward to seeing you on Friday, May 4.

6. Reminder About International Student Graduation Reception on May 12

We are delighted that so many international exchange students and graduating students have informed the ISSS that they will be attending the 21st Annual International Student Graduation Reception in the University Union Mandela Room, Saturday, May 12 at 7:00pm.

This year, we are once again using a web invitation and response form, and have already notified all Spring 2007 graduates and exchange students completing their programs of the link, which is:
http://isss.binghamton.edu/prog/GradRec/gradRecInvite.htm

The invitation states that your response is due by Monday, May 7. If you will be graduating, or completing your exchange program this month, come join the ISSS staff and your fellow students for good food, elegant atmosphere, short speech making, (only three!), lots of photo opportunities and special recognition gifts for our graduates. The ISSS staff will be there! You should be there, too!!

Students who graduated in December 2006 or who will graduate in Summer 2007 and would like to participate in the International Student Graduation Reception should also use the invitation link, above.

Please note that the International Student Graduation Reception is separate from the University's official Commencement ceremonies, which will be held the following week on Saturday, May 19 for graduate students and Sunday, May 20 for undergraduate students. For more information on the Commencement ceremonies, visit:
http://commencement.binghamton.edu/

7. Early Registration for Fall 2007 Ends May11

Advance registration for all current students for Fall 2007 continues from now through Friday, May 11. Secure next semester's courses NOW by registering on-line using the BUSI (Binghamton University Student Information) system. BUSI is available from 8:00 am to 6:00 am (22 hours/day) seven days a week during this time period.

Current students can access the registration system at any of the BUSI Centers on campus, the computer pods (providing a class is not in session), or any other computer with on-line access by going to http://busi.binghamton.edu Downloading BUICK may be required.

After registration, you can look at your schedule on BUSI or the BUSI web at any time. Classrooms will be assigned in mid-August. Please look on-line or in the printed schedule of classes (available in late August) for your classroom assignments.

8. Practical Training Update from the ISSS

If you are graduating in May, are in F-1 status, and have been planning to apply for optional practical training post-graduation, but have not yet done so, do not delay! May graduates must send their completed applications to the USCIS Vermont Processing Center so that it arrives there before May 19, 2007 (for those receiving graduate degrees) or May 20, 2007 (for those receiving undergraduate degrees), which are the completion dates for May graduates. Thus, less than three weeks remain, and we remind our F-1 students to allow 7-10 business days for the ISSS portion of the processing of OPT applications.

Students who will be graduating in Summer 2007 should also consider beginning the application process now, so that they will receive their work authorization cards in a timely manner. Traditionally, the ISSS has advised students to allow 12 weeks for application processing. You are urged to consider these dates when submitting your paperwork. Applications are available in the ISSS.

Once you receive your EAD card, please bring it to the ISSS so that a copy can be made for your file. This will prove very useful to you in case the card is ever lost or misplaced. Remember: you cannot begin employment any earlier than the starting date on the EAD card.

9. Accessing Health Services, Library Services and Off Campus Bus Services During the Summer

BU students remaining in the Binghamton area for the summer (but who are not registered for Summer Session) frequently ask the ISSS about their ability to utilize services during the summer months, such as the Library, University Health Service, and Bus Services.

Any BU student can continue to use the library in the summer with their expired May 2007 BU ID. A student wishing to visit University Health Service in the summer, but who is not registered for the Summer Session, will be asked to pay a nominal one-time fee at the Office of Student Accounts per Summer Term. In order to ride OCCT and BC Transit, non-summer registered BU graduate students must go to the Office of Student Accounts and pay a $30 summer bus pass fee. Then, bring the receipt for payment to the Registrar's Office, and the Registrar's Office will issue a special card valid to ride the buses this summer.

10. U.S. Immigration Requirements If You are Leaving Binghamton Permanently

ISSS staff are often asked what the immigration requirements are if a student will no longer be continuing at Binghamton, either because the student is returning to his/her home country, or is beginning Practical Training or Academic Training, or because the student is going to begin study at a new school.

Regardless of your plans, retain your old I-20s (or DS-2019s)! These forms represent your immigration history in the U.S. and should be kept in a safe place as you would any important document. In addition, you must complete a departure/change of address form, available on the ISSS website at http://isss.binghamton.edu/forms/depForm.html

The immigration regulatory process for transferring your F-1 status from Binghamton to a new U.S. school requires you to complete a SEVIS Release Form with the ISSS so that your federal SEVIS record can be transferred to your new school. The SEVIS Release Form may be obtained in the ISSS or downloaded at:
http://isss.binghamton.edu/forms/SEVISRelse.pdf

Also, follow your new school's instructions for obtaining your I-20, and for reporting to that school in a timely fashion.

Students who will be ending their studies in May but have no plans to apply for practical training (F-1), academic training (J-1) or continue at a new school or in a new field or level of study, or seek a change of non-immigrant status must depart the United States within sixty days of completion of their academic program if they are in F-1 status, or within thirty days if they are in J-1 status.

11. Latest H-1B Cap Count Update

As this edition of ISSS-BU News was being published, the most recent US Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) update available for the 20,000 H-1B visa exemption was dated Wednesday, April 25, 2007. This exemption is for those with U.S. master's degrees or higher, and the cap for this exemption had not yet been reached. However, 19,172 applications that qualify for this category have been received by USCIS. Thus, as of April 25, 96% of the 20,000 available exempted applications had been used. It is anticipated that the 20,000 limit was likely reached by Friday of last week. ISSS-BU News will issue an announcement once USCIS updates its information.

The USCIS is maintaining a “cap count” chart on its website, where readers can track the number of H-1B visas remaining. Go to http://www.uscis.gov and from the list on the left side of the home page, select “Current non-immigrant worker visa cap.”

12. Planning to Travel Outside the United States With a Child?

If you have a child (or children) with you in the United States, and plan to travel abroad with them this Spring or Summer, we recommend that you read an important article on the ISSS web site about travel with children. The article specifically addresses issues when only one parent is traveling with the children. Visit: http://isss.binghamton.edu/travel/parntchild.html

ISSS-BU is a listserv owned and managed by the Office of International Student and Scholar Services, Division of Student Affairs, at the State University of New York at Binghamton. It is the publisher of ISSS-BU News . Permission is granted to freely distribute the information posted to this list as long as its contents remain unchanged.