In order to receive your I-20/DS-2019, you must show that you have sufficient funding to support yourself and any dependents during your studies. All funding information must be less than 6-months old. Use the information below to provide appropriate proof of funding to request your I-20.
Your proof of funding must be enough to cover one academic year’s cost of tuition, living expenses, student fees, and health insurance. Listed expenses are estimates only and are subject to change. Proof of funding documents will not be returned to you. We advise all students to have a contingency plan in place in the event that overseas funds become inaccessible or devalued. If funding documents are found to be fraudulent, your I-20 is subject to cancellation.
Tuition and Fees are set by the University of Wisconsin system. Know that the actual costs of your attendance may not match these totals exactly. We have provided additional resources to encourage you to review all the information to get a sense of your actual cost of attendance.
Undergraduate Student Required Proof of Funding: $39,313.00
Beginning Fall 2023:
Expense
Undergraduate Students
Tuition (2 semesters)
$20,455.00
Segregated Fees & International Student Fees (2 semesters)
$1,769.00
Living Expenses (12 months)
$15,000.00
International Student Health Insurance (12 months)
$2,089.00
AMOUNT YOU MUST SHOW:
$39,313.00
Graduate Student Required Proof of Funding $42,990.00 – $47,036.00
Beginning Fall 2023:
Expense
Business Graduate Students
Other Graduate Students
Tuition (2 semesters)
$28,178.00
$24,132.00
Segregated Fees & International Student Fees (2 semesters)
$1,769.00
$1,769.00
Living Expenses (12 months)
$15,000.00
$15,000.00
International Student Health Insurance (12 months)
$2,089.00
$2,089.00
AMOUNT YOU MUST SHOW:
$47,036.00
$42,990.00
Acceptable Forms of Funding
Note: All funding documents must be less than six months old.
Personal Funds: Bank Letter or Bank Statement in your name
Family Funds: Bank Letter or Bank Statement AND Affidavit of Support signed by a parent or spouse
Private Sponsor (Relative, Friend, Company): Bank Letter or Bank Statement AND an Affidavit of Support signed by the account holder, and proof of company ownership, if applicable
Scholarship: Award Letter
Government Sponsorship: Award Letter / Financial Guarantee
UWM Chancellor’s Award, UWM Fellowship, or other UWM Award: Award Letter
UWM Assistantship: Letter of Appointment Note: Assistantships of 33% or higher will cover tuition and significantly supplement the cost of health insurance if enrolled with the UWM Benefits Office within 30 days of the contract start date. Students who do not enroll with the UWM Benefits Office within 30 days of the contract start date will be required to pay the international student health insurance fee. If your stipend is less than the living expenses, segregated fees, and international student fee, you will need to submit additional proof of funding.
We advise all students to have a contingency plan in place in the event that overseas funds become inaccessible or devalued.
If funding documents are found to be fraudulent, your I-20 is subject to cancellation.
Forms of Funding We Cannot Accept
For your proof of funding documentation, we cannot accept accounts where the money is not immediately accessible, examples include:
stock portfolios
property ownership
proof of salary
insurance policies
retirement accounts
fixed deposit slips (a current statement of the available funds from a fixed deposit may be acceptable)
Please see the Acceptable Forms of Funding information above.
Affidavit of Support
If your funding is coming from a private sponsor, such as a parent, family member, or friend, it must be accompanied by an affidavit of support. By submitting this document, your sponsor is attesting that these funds will be available to you to cover your expenses. Please have your sponsor fill out and sign the Affidavit of Support Template Document and submit it with his/her bank information. If you prefer not to use our template, a letter including the same pertinent information is acceptable.
Bringing Spouse/Children
You will need to provide additional proof of funding if you are planning to request any dependents (spouse and/or children) be added to your SEVIS record. We will issue you the F-2 I-20 which they will use to apply for their F-2 visa. Dependent proof of funding amounts are:
$5,000.00 for your spouse
$4,000.00 for each child
New students requesting dependent I-20s: You will complete the dependent I-20 request during your UWM Initial I-20 request. Continuing students adding dependents to your current SEVIS record: You need to complete a request to add F-2 dependents to your record. See our Dependents page for more information.
Description of Funding Expenses
Tuition: Base tuition is determined by the University of Wisconsin system.
International students who have an F or J visa are classified as non-residents of Wisconsin.
Segregated Fees: All students are charged segregated fees.
Segregated fees are charges, in addition to tuition, assessed to all students for student services, activities, programs and facilities that support the mission of UWM. Segregated fees are per term and based on full-time status.
Graduate students with assistantships are responsible for their segregated fees, they are not covered in the tuition remission.
International Student Fees: International students are charged a $100 fee per fall and spring semesters.
Living Expenses: This is an estimate based on average costs for rent, utilities, food, and minor expenses.
This is a standard estimate that cannot be adjusted.
You may use more or less than this estimation.
International Student Health Insurance: All students are required to be enrolled in UWM’s International Student Health Insurance.
In addition to the base tuition of your program, specific departments charge additional tuition per credit.
Refer to the UWM Tuition and Fees website for the “Additional/Differential per Credit Charges” document under the appropriate term for more information.
Additional Course Fees:
Many courses have additional course fees on top of the normal tuition charged per credit.
You can use the following website to look up your courses and determine if and how much you will be charged in additional course fees: Course Fees by Term (uwm.edu).
Note: These additional costs are not included in the required proof of funding tuition estimates.
