Student aid, visa

I was accepted to my dream school and am currently away from my usual home. I plan to stay here in Japan until the term starts in Sept/Oct. Can I get everything done regarding visa and student aid from here before I leave for the UK? I planned to make a pit stop in the US anyway- should I extend my stay for any reason?

You can do all the aid stuff from there, but the visa will have to happen in the US.

I did all the loan stuff from the UK. It did make it a bit more difficult, but since almost everything's online it wasn't too bad.

The visa can only be issued from the consulate in your home country, though. You can do the online application from wherever, but you have to be back in the US to submit it.

The visa can only be issued from the consulate in your home country, though. You can do the online application from wherever, but you have to be back in the US to submit it.

Where did you get that information from? It is not my understanding.  Paragraph 28 of the Immigration Rules says that an application for entry clearance "must be made to the post in the country or territory where the applicant is living".  The IDIs go on to explain what "living" means:

"There is no precise definition of the word "living" as contained in the Immigration Rules but the relevant rule has been so worded to allow posts to operate with a degree of flexibility, discretion and common sense.  In general terms 'country or territory where the applicant is living' refers to the place where a person is present in any capacity other than as a short-term visitor and has permission from the relevant authorities to be so."

I think I read too much into what the OP had written. For some reason, and rereading it, I'm not sure where I got this, I thought s/he was only doing a short-term vacation thing in Japan, thus making it not the home country/where they're living.

Thanks for all of your replies.

To clarify, I am currently residing in Japan, and have been for more than a year.

If jen252 is correct, then I can apply for the visa from here.

I just wonder if the (potential) financial aid process will complicate things, as it would involve 3 countries and a lot of faxing back and forth.

I suppose it depends on the type of financial aid you're talking about.

With the federal loan options, it's not that hard to do it from outside the US. (The only complicated part on my process was when Sallie Mae kept changing their mind as to whether or not they'd received a signature from my guarantor, who was in the US.)

I'll be in the States for a holiday visit. Is there any paperwork I need to complete the financial aid process?

And which address do I use? I don't actually reside in the US anymore.

If you don't actually reside in the US anymore, I'd suggest you have a chat with the person at your university's funding office who deals with international students. You'll need to have a good relationship with that person, anyway, as he or she will be your gateway to any money.

The funding rep at my uni was an immense help. She replied to my first list of questions, which I sent right after I accepted the uni's offer, with a whole package they had prepared for US students, explaining in all sorts of detail the process we'd be going through.

Sorry I can't give you more help than that, but your situation seems to be quite unique and I have no idea what the implications are.