Student visa and return ticket

Hey there! I am currently under a visitor visa and I am enrolling in a Portuguese course that starts in February. I will return to the United States for 6 weeks to work on my student visa paperwork. I have heard of visas being denied due to the number of hours taken per week; the UK, for example, requires 15 hours of lessons, but under the New York- Brazilian consulate website, rules state no hour requirements, only a notarized, legalized acceptance letter. Another requirement is a return ticket... I am planning on extending my visa for the next semester and I don't plan on going to the US, is it possible if a ticket to Argentina will suffice? Thanks for your help!

You may not get the visa issued for the second semester, you might just get one for the first semester which you would need to renew. That's the way they usually work here. If however, you pre-register for the second semester now and it's covered in your acceptance letter then you just might luck out.

Regarding a return ticket, actually there is no legal requirement that you return to your place of origin; just that you have an outward bound ticket to either a country for which you have a valid visa or one which you are entitled to enter using only your passport on a Visa Waiver.

Is there any information on the forums for completing student VISAs? I need to find out and apply.

Thanks for the response! I just got my passport and new student visa back! How many times will I be able to extend my visa from Brasil? I am planning on continuing taking courses at Mckenzie and stay for a couple of years.

It all depends on where you are applying from. Every country has its own rules, and even in the US every region has its own requirements.

Hi TheYetzter,

As far as I'm aware as long as you continue to take courses and the institution confirms them in writing (just the same way as is required to obtain the visa) you can renew the visa as many times as you need to.

Cheers,
William James Woodward, Expat-blog Experts Team

Hi James,

Just a quick question in relation to this thread...

In terms of participation in a language course what type of school or university is acceptable to the authorities for obtaining a student visa or renewal of same?

Anyone recommend in a good language school or university in Salvador de Bahia?

Is there a requirement to demonstrate self financial self sufficiency whilst studying ?

May thanks,

Justin.

I think that the "Inglês para Estrangeiros" course in any of the public universities in Brazil qualifies for the VITEM-IV Student Visa. You would have to actually contact the specific university to make sure about start dates, etc., anyway so you should ask if it will qualify for the visa at the same time.

To find the universities that offer a course just Google "Inglês para Estrangeiros + university acronym" like USP (Universidade do São Paulo) UFRJ (Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro), etc;

Just Google "universities in state name" and you'll get a list of all universities in that state, it should give you their acronym too