Visa info for workshop participants and short-term visitors
Expenses
Expenses can be paid for all visa types.
Honoraria (fees)
The following restrictions apply to payment of honoraria:
- You must have a Social Security number or US
Identification Number (ITIN), which takes 4-6 weeks to get.
You can apply for the ITIN through the YITP upon your arrival.
- H-1 or F-1: no payment.
- J-1 ("Exchange Visitor, Short Term") is needed for payment for more than 9 days.
The J1 visa holder may not have accepted such payment from more than 5 institutions in the previous 6-month period.
- B-1 ("Business Visitor") or WB ("Waiver of Business"):
You must declare your visit as
"Business", not "Tourism", when entering the country ---
In the inspection area of the American port of entry (or land border, e.g. Canada)
you will be required to show a valid passport and a round trip ticket.
Whether you are a visitor
with a visa or have a visa waiver, the Immigration official will mark the I-94 card
(arrival/departure record, green colored for waiver program), which is
usually issued onboard the airplane and stapled into your passport at the
port of entry inspection, to indicate your classification. Make sure that you
tell him your visit is on business, not tourism: If you have a visa, he must write
B-1 (not B-2) on the I-94; if you have a visa waiver, he must write
WB (not WT).
Check the card for the correct mark (B-1 or WB) before leaving the inspection area.
This is crucial: You must get the correct classification, and this is absolutely the only time
you can get it for this visit; otherwise, we can't pay you honoraria.
Visa waiver program
With stays of 90 days or less visitors from participating countries may be
eligible to enter the U.S. on the visa waiver program. This means it is not
necessary to obtain a visa stamp from an American Consulate.
Canadian citizens
Canadians do not need visas for the USA, and are considered to have B-1 status.
Mexican citizens
No visa is necessary if you have a "Mexican Border Crossing Card" (Form
I-186 or I-586), considered to have a B-1 status.
Visa issuance for third country nationals in Canada and Mexico
For those from countries other than Canada and
Mexico who may be planning to apply for a US non-immigrant visa at a US
Consular post in Canada or Mexico:
U.S. Consular posts in Canada and Mexico
have suspended visa issuance for third country nationals; they will handle
visa issuance for residents of Canada and Mexico only.
International students and scholars should check with an International
Student and Scholar Adviser before traveling to Canada, Mexico or the
adjacent territories of the Caribbean, since there is some question about
whether the current practice of "automatic visa revalidation" for stays of
under 30 days will apply to nationals of certain countries.
Post 9/11/01
The American Physical Society
has some useful pages of advice.