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INS to
Track Foreign Students Via Web May
10, 2002
The Immigration and Naturalization Service has developed a Web-based system to
track hundreds of thousands of foreign students, and expects to have it in
operation by January, 2003. The system will link every US consulate with every INS port of entry and all
74,000 educational institutions eligible to host foreign students. The
institutions include colleges, universities, technical schools and high schools. The INS for three decades has required colleges and universities to compile
information on international students. But
because of the volume of paper it received, INS told schools in 1988 to keep the
files on campus. The INS has been under pressure from Congress to get the computerized system
running since the September 11 attacks. Three of the 19 hijackers were in the country on student visas
— one had entered on such a visa, while two others, including alleged
ringleader Mohammed Atta, entered on travel visas and switched to student visas. Once the new system is operational, foreign students accepted by a US school
will be sent INS form I-20. The
school will enter the student's information into the INS tracking system. The
student will then have to pay a $95.00 registration fee and will be given a fee
receipt.
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