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Can I get student visa for Canada or Germany from the USA, if I am on J1 visa in the USA?

The matter of question is that I do not want to return to my home (=citizen) country to apply to visa.

I have offers from both Canadian and Germany universities, so I do not think there will be problems, except the fact that I am on J1 in the USA (non-resident). My US internship will be for 1 year.

Gala
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Tigran
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    It should be rather irrelevant what visa you're on currently to your future host country, or am I missing something? Go to the respective embassy of your country of choice and apply for a visa. – deceze Apr 30 '14 at 15:03
  • By J1 visa I mean that it's long term & non-tourist, so may be in this case I can apply from where I am. May be it is irrelevant, unless this is tourist visa :) – Tigran Apr 30 '14 at 15:09
  • Your citizenship might also be relevant. For example, in Germany, some people can enter the country for a visa-free short-stay and apply for a residence permit from within the country whereas other cannot change status (i.e. if they entered for a short-stay, they need to return to their country of residence to apply for the residence permit). – Gala May 01 '14 at 09:44
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    @deceze It's relevant in that some consulates require applicants to be a citizen or at least a resident of the country where they apply. It is in fact the case for both Germany and Canada even if there are sometimes way around this requirement and the US J1 visa seems to be enough anyway. – Gala May 01 '14 at 11:26

1 Answers1

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For Germany, depending on your citizenship, you might even be able to apply after entering the country. Specifically, that's possible if you are from the US, Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Brazil, South Korea, a few tiny countries or, obviously, a member state of the European Union (in which case you don't need a visa or permit as such but might need to register your presence). Otherwise, you do need to apply for a student visa in advance.

As far as I know, you have to apply for that visa to the German consulate for your place of residence but the German authorities have their own notion of who is a resident and who isn't and you don't need to be a permanent resident to be able to apply. Thus, among the things you need to submit according to the German embassy in Washington, you will find:

  • additional for non-US citizens: original of valid US alien registration card or valid US resident visa (type A, E, F, G, H, I, J, L, O, R) and two copies thereof

[…]

  • your driver's license and/or utility bill in your name as proof of residence in the consular district where you plan to apply

which suggest that while a J visa isn't an “immigrant visa” under US law, it's still a “resident visa” as far as the German authorities are concerned and you could still apply there if you have a proof of address. On the other hand, a B-visa (temporary visit) wouldn't be sufficient.

For Canada, this question on the travel website suggests you could also apply from the US, if you are staying there for one year.

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