Late arrival and Deferral
For your success as a new F-1 international student, you are required to be physically present for mandatory international student orientation (see the orientation information above). We understand that some students may be experiencing delays in securing a visa appointment. If you are not able to arrive before August 18, you may still continue to attend the Fall 2025 semester ONLY IF ALL of the following conditions are met:
Undergraduate Students
- You have registered for at least 12 credit hours to meet the F-1 enrollment requirement. (only one online class will be counted toward this requirement.) You can contact your academic advisor for course registration by email at aac@memphis.edu.
- Email your late arrival reason and expected arrival date to theworld@memphis.edu.
- Depending on your arrival date and whether you have registered to meet the F-1 enrollment requirement, you may be given a written confirmation of late arrival. Carry the written confirmation when entering the US, as you may be asked by the CBP officers at the port of entry to present proof that the university is accepting your late arrival.
- Arrive in Memphis before the approved late arrival date of September 3rd.
If you are not able to attend Fall 2025, please see the deferral process below. You are encouraged to start the program by taking online courses from your home country now when you work on getting an F-1 visa to arrive in Memphis in Spring 2026. Please check with your academic advisor for the available online course options.
Graduate Students
- Contact your department chair and academic advisor to request a late arrival approval. Do not request for a late arrival from each course professor.
- Successfully receive a written confirmation from your department guaranteeing full-time enrollment to meet the F-1 enrollment requirements when you arrive. Please use the following links to identify your academic advisor: HERE.
- Forward a copy of the confirmation to theworld@memphis.edu.
- Carry the written confirmation of your late arrival approval when entering the US, as you may be asked by the CBP officers at the port of entry to present proof that the university is accepting your late arrival.
- Arrive in Memphis before the approved late arrival date of September 5th.
If you are not able to attend Fall 2025, please see the deferral process below. You are encouraged to start the program by enrolling in our online courses from your home country as you work on getting an F-1 visa to arrive in Memphis in Spring 2026. Please check with your academic advisor for the available online course options.
Arriving Late and Maintaining Status
We want you to be well informed of the risks associated with late arrival.
- If you arrive late, you are at your own risk of not having enough classes to meet the F-1 requirements.
- Failure to enroll in the required number of credit hours to meet the F-1 requirements may cause you to be out of F-1 status, which may require that you return to your home country immediately.
- We want you to be successful academically and maintain the F-1 status. If you are not able to obtain a late arrival permission from your academic department, you should defer your admission to Spring 2026.
- Late registration may result in additional fees. Please see the Fall 2025 fee calendar HERE.
Last day of online class registration for Fall 2025: August 29, 2025. Late fee will apply and you may not be able to register for class after this date.
Deferral Process
Graduate
- Click HERE.
- Go down to where it says “Change Your Starting Semester” to defer to a future semester.
- Your previous I-20 application will not be valid. You must submit a new I-20 application for the new semester HERE.
Undergraduate