Hi Peter,

Thanks for hosting this AMA. I’ve an immigration issue related to status transition. So I came to the U.S on an F-1 visa about 6 years ago. However, during the course of my undergraduate study, I found out that I qualified for TPS. So I applied and received it. Afterwards, I decided to take a leave of abscence from school to work on a startup because TPS allows me to. I was also made to change my status from F1 to TPS. And my I-20 status period expired a few months after I took the leave at the beginning of 2024.

Owing to the recent TPS terminations of various countries, I’m afraid that my TPS will be terminated once it’s up for review in a few months. My question regards transistioning back to F1 status. I’m wondering if I can change status back from TPS to F1 without having to leave the country. This is because a visa ban is currently in place for the country for which I hold TPS. As such I can’t risk traveling outside the country as I won’t be able to get back in because of the visa ban. Btw the ban anpplies to all visa categories including F1 and O1.

Thanks!