Alerts & Announcements

Based on a combination of best practices, laws, and regulations, all students on visas and even permanent residents (i.e. all noncitizens) to carry the following documents at all times:

• Original state ID or Drivers license
• Clear paper copy of a valid passport
• Clear copy of a visa
• Clear paper copy of the I-20 or DS-2019 form
• Copy of the most recent I-94

Additionally, all noncitizens living in the United States must report any change of address within 10 days of the change.

Currently enrolled international students with F-1 or J-1 visas can easily report address changes by updating their local mailing address in my.Charlotte.edu. The address information correctly entered in my.Charlotte.edu will flow into the ISSO Portal, from whence it shall journey into SEVIS, the official electronic database for non-immigrant students at UNC Charlotte–this completes the address reporting process and satisfies the U.S. government’s requirements.

When receiving any phone call from someone you don’t know, it is always safe to let the call go to voicemail.  If the caller is legitimate, they will leave you a message and explain how you can call them back.  We also urge you to ‘trust your gut’ when something feels like a scam and/or spam reach out to the ISSO to confirm if the threat is legitimate.  

Clues that the call is part of a scam:

Scammers do not act professionally. Scammers may be loud, pushy, rude, and scary in an attempt to get you to ‘act now’ to relieve your distress, without giving you time to carefully think through the situation.

Scammers demand payment via gift cards or Bitcoin. The U.S. Government does not accept payments via gift card or Bitcoin. USCIS only accepts payments: online using a credit/debit card, prepaid debit card or bank withdrawal; by mail with a card, check, or money order (money orders can only go to a USCIS Lockbox or a Service Center); or in person at a USCIS field office. If the person that you are talking to requests your fees in a gift card or Bitcoin, it is a scam and safe to hang up.

The phone number may appear to be from USCIS or another U.S. government agency. USCIS will not, nor will any U.S. government agency call you! Scammers can spoof the caller ID to make it seem like that the call is coming from a legitimate U.S. government agency. If the U.S. government needs to reach you, they will contact you through paper mail, or send you electronic communication as part of your electronic application process (such as the electronic I-765).

For more information regarding scams, please click here.