After the J-1 Summer Work and Travel Program: Status, Leaving and Taxes

Three dates matter at the end of a Work and Travel season: the end date on your DS-2019, the end of the 30 days after it, and the date on your I-94. The travel hub covers the whole trip home, and this page covers what ends, what can change, and what you still owe.

The short version

1. Leave the US within 30 days after your DS-2019 end date.
2. Leave on or before the date on your I-94, not your visa date.
3. Do not work after your program ends.
4. Give your employer a good home address so your W-2 reaches you.
5. Keep proof that you left, such as your ticket.

What ends your J-1 status

Your program ends on the date printed on your DS-2019, and the grace period follows. Upon completion of the exchange program, a participant has a grace period of 30 days to depart the United States. During those 30 days, participants are no longer in J-visa status and fall under USCIS. USCIS allows the time so participants can settle their affairs and prepare to return home.

The program has a hard top. Summer Work Travel runs up to four months during the long break between academic years. Extensions of program participation are not permitted. Students must return home before their university start date.

Three rules cover your stay after the end date:

• No work. Participants may no longer continue exchange activities, nor may they work.
• No lawful stay on the end date alone. A DS-2019 end date, standing alone, does not allow a J holder to remain in lawful status.
• No grace after a just-cause termination. If a sponsor terminates participation for just cause, you are expected to depart immediately and you are not entitled to the 30 days.

The grace period page goes through each rule in detail.

The date that counts is on your I-94

Your authorized status and the date it expires are in the lower right-hand corner of your Form I-94. The admitted-until date or D/S notation is the record of your authorized stay. The visa expiration date is not. You cannot use the visa expiration date to work out your permitted length of stay.

An expired visa is not a problem while you stay inside the country. If your visa has expired and you do not plan to travel outside the US, you do not need to renew it. Leaving after it expired means a new visa to come back and continue the program.

Can you change status or stay longer?

A change of status is possible only while you are still in valid status. Under 8 CFR 248.1, a person who is continuing to maintain nonimmigrant status may apply to have the classification changed. If you want to change the purpose of your visit while in the US, you must file a request with USCIS before your authorized stay expires, as the USCIS change-of-status page explains.

The grace period does not stretch that window by itself. An extension-of-stay application must reach USCIS on or before the end of the authorized admission period, which includes the 30-day period. A denied extension means you must depart immediately if the admission period has expired.

What the rules say about timing:

Apply as soon as you decide you need another category. Failure to maintain status can lead to a bar on returning and to removal.

Which form and how

Request an extension or change of status on Form I-539, by mail or online, before the expiration date shown on your Form I-94. Requests for certain employment-based classes must go on Form I-129 instead of Form I-539. Filing on the wrong form may result in rejection or denial, and USCIS does not refund fees if a case is denied.

For a change to F-1 student status, USCIS does not refuse the request only because school attendance began before filing. Even so, do not change your activity before USCIS approves the request.

Court order on a new rule, seen 2026-10-20

As of 2026-10-20 (USCIS I-539 page), on Sept. 14, 2026 the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts postponed the effective date of the DHS final rule on a fixed time period of admission and an extension of stay procedure, published July 17, 2026 (91 Fed. Reg. 44976). DHS is preliminarily enjoined from implementing the rule, and USCIS proceeds under the previous regulatory provisions until the order is lifted. Check the I-539 page on uscis.gov before you file, because this can change.

The two-year home-country rule

Some J-1 exchange visitors are subject to the two-year home-country physical presence requirement. For those who are, it means returning home for a cumulative total of at least two years. A subject exchange visitor who has no waiver can change status only to A or G classification. A subject person also cannot change status in the US to H or L, or adjust to permanent resident status. The two-year rule page explains who is subject.

What happens if you overstay

Unlawful presence is any time you are in the US after your period of stay authorized by the Secretary expires. Typically, you start accruing it if you stay after the date on your Form I-94. A J-1 admitted for duration of status generally begins accruing it the day after status ends.

The penalties are time bars on coming back:

Overstaying has a second cost. Your visa is automatically voided if you overstay the end date of your authorized stay, unless you filed a timely extension or change-of-status application that is pending and not frivolous. Staying past the authorized period is a violation of US immigration law and may make you ineligible for a visa in the future. Whether a particular person is inadmissible can be complex.

Leaving the United States

You must exit on or before the departure date stamped on your I-94. Participants may travel inside the US during the grace period, but travelling outside the US during it is not recommended, because you may not be permitted reentry. The leaving the US page covers the airport and border steps.

Keep proof that you left. Evidence of departure can include entry stamps in a passport, transportation tickets, pay stubs and other receipts. A paper I-94 goes to the carrier or CBP when you leave. Air and sea departures are recorded electronically.

Land exits need extra care. If you got your I-94 electronically but plan to depart by land to Canada or Mexico, your exit may not be recorded properly. A departure is recorded if you leave by land and re-enter the US before the expiration date stamped in your passport. Travel with evidence of your land departure.

Money and paperwork to settle before you go

At the end of the program, give your employer your permanent address in your home country. Make sure it is a good address for receiving mail. Your employer needs it to send your W-2, the form you use to file your tax return. Ask your employer if they need a prepaid, pre-addressed envelope.

Your bank account needs a plan too. A refund check from the IRS is a paper check that you may not be able to cash in your home country. Direct deposit needs an active US bank account when the IRS processes your return. One sponsor suggests leaving the account open until the refund arrives. The same sponsor lists closing the account as a question to ask your bank before you leave. The bank account page covers the rest.

Taxes after you go home

You can still file your US taxes from abroad. The order of steps is short:

1. Your employer mails your W-2 by January 31.
2. If it has not come by February 15 of the year after your employment, contact your host employer at once.
3. Nonresident aliens who must file an income tax return use Form 1040-NR.
4. If you worked across two calendar years, repeat the process.
5. State taxes are filed separately.

For the 2025 calendar year, an employee with wages subject to U.S. income tax withholding generally filed by April 15, 2026. Someone without such wages filed by June 15, 2026. A nonresident student on an F, J, M or Q visa who has no income subject to section 871 tax does not need to file Form 1040-NR. If no return is required, send Form 8843 by the due date of Form 1040-NR.

Two details help abroad. A refund can be mailed to a foreign address entered on line 35e of Form 1040-NR. An agent in the US can prepare and sign your return if you couldn’t, for example because you were not in the US at any time in the 60 days before it was due. The tax return guide walks through the filing.

One more form concerns leaving. Before leaving the US, aliens generally must get a certificate of compliance, with listed exceptions. J-1 exchange visitors fall in an exempt group, with conditions on US income. A person who is not exempt files Form 1040-C or Form 2063 with the local TAC office before leaving. Read the exceptions in the Publication 519 section before you go.