Arrival for J-1 Scholars

Entering the U.S.

In order to board your flight to the U.S., you will need to show your passport, valid J-1 visa, and DS-2019 in most cases. You will also need to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination (Please see the CDC website for details).

Please have the following documents in your carry-on luggage (not in your checked bags) to present to Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at the port-of entry to demonstrate your eligibility to enter the U.S. in J-1 status:

Passport (valid for at least six months into the future from your date of arrival)
J-1 visa (valid/unexpired on date of entry)
DS-2019
Northeastern Appointment Letter

If a CBP Officer needs to speak with an official at Northeastern University to confirm your eligibility, please request that the CBP officer calls the university to speak to an Alternate Responsible Officer (ARO), using the following contact information (The operations center is staffed 24/7 for this purpose):

International Safety Office:
- +1.617.373.2121 (NUPD)
- [email protected]
- This office is open even outside of normal business hours.
- This office can best support you when you have registered your travel in advance so that they can easily access your travel details.

Office of Global Services:
- +1.617.373.2310
- [email protected]
- Please see our Contact page for operations hours.

Upon Arrival

J-1 Scholars must confirm their arrival date at Northeastern with the Human Resources Contact in the host college.

J-1 Scholars experiencing delays due to visa processing must notify the HR Contact in the host college and the Office of Global Services (OGS) as soon as possible (email: [email protected]).

J-1 Scholars are permitted to enter the U.S. up to 30 days before and after the program start date on the DS-2019. However, if your arrival will be delayed for more than two weeks from the program start date, please contact the HR Contact in the host college to amend the program start date. Per federal regulations, OGS is required to provide orientation and validate your SEVIS record within 30 days after the program start date.

J-1 Scholar Orientation

After you have arrived in the U.S., checked in with your NU host department, and started your appointment at NU, please register for J-1 Scholar Orientation as soon as possible. Orientations are scheduled for every 2^nd and 4^th Monday. If you are unable to attend any of the orientation times below, please email [email protected].

You will receive instructions close to your start date from your NU host department to activate your NU email address. You will need to use your NU credentials to login to Zoom and to register for the J-1 Scholar Orientation.

Please do not register for J-1 Scholar Orientation until after you have arrived and activated your NU email. You only need to attend J-1 Scholar Orientation once.

When you are ready to attend J-1 Scholar Orientation, please click the link for the orientation date you plan to attend to register in advance. Please register at least one day in advance. You may need to first login to Northeastern Zoom (click “Sign In” in top right), then click the link below to register. If no one is registered for the orientation as of 9:00 AM local Boston time, the orientation for that day will be cancelled.

May & Early June Orientations