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The following are the general requirements for an F-1 Visa:

1. The student must be enrolled in an "academic" educational program, or a language-training program;
2. The school must be approved by SEVIS (U.S. Immigration and Customers Enforcement);
3. The student must be enrolled as a full-time student at the institution;
4. The student must be proficient in English or be enrolled in courses leading to English proficiency;
5. The student must have sufficient funds available for self-support during the entire proposed course of study; and
6. The student must maintain a residence abroad which he/she has no intention of giving up.

The main requirements for an H-1B1 visa (for Chileans) are as follows:

The following are the general requirements for an M-1 Visa:

1. The student must be enrolled in a vocational program;
2. The school must be approved by SEVIS (U.S. Immigration and Customers Enforcement).
3. The student must be enrolled as a full-time student at the institution;
4. The student must be proficient in English or be enrolled in courses leading to English proficiency;
5. The student must have sufficient funds available for self-support during the entire proposed course of study; and
6. The student must maintain a residence abroad which he/she has no intention of giving up.

Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is the primary "protected status" which the U.S. government grants to eligible individuals from certain designated countries, authorizing them to remain in the U.S. for a certain period of time.

The USCIS states:

"You may be eligible to apply for temporary protected status if:

* You are a national of a country designated for TPS. (You may also be eligible if you are a person who has no nationality but last habitually resided in a designated country.) Please see our list of countries designated for temporary protected status.

* You apply for TPS during the specified registration period. The registration period is stated in Federal Register notices of designation and is also generally noted in USCIS press releases. For specific Federal Register notice cites, please see our list of countries currently designated for temporary protected status.

* You have been continuously physically present in the United States since the TPS designation began, or since the effective date of the most recent re-designation. For dates of specific country designations, please see our list of countries designated for temporary protected status.

* You have continuously resided in the United States since the date specified in the Federal Register notice of designation. This date may be different than the effective date of the TPS designation.

* You are admissible as an immigrant and are not otherwise ineligible for TPS. Applicable grounds of inadmissibility and bases for ineligibility are specified in CFR 244.3 and 244.4, respectively. You may also consult the instructions on USCIS Form I-821 (Application for Temporary Protected Status)."

The main requirements for an H-1B visa are:

1. The job must be either in a "specialty occupation", i.e., a professional field, or as a fashion model.
   • a "specialty occupation" is one which requires the theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge to fully perform the occupation and requires completion of a specific course of education culminating in a baccalaureate degree in a specific occupational specialty, e.g., architects, teachers, engineers, scientists, etc.
   • fashion models, on the other hand, do not have to meet the specialty occupation requirements; instead, they must establish that they possess "distinguished merit and ability," e.g., national or international renown, etc.
2. The applicant must actually have the necessary credentials, e.g., the baccalaureate degree in the particular specialty.
   • If a license is required to practice the particular occupation, then the applicant must possess the necessary license.

As a general rule, any foreign national seeking to temporarily enter the U.S. must present a PASSPORT (valid for a minimum of six months from the date of the expiration of the initial period of the alien's admission) AND a valid nonimmigrant VISA. However, there are certain EXCEPTIONS to this general rule. This section discusses some of those exceptions.