Foreign Visitor Information

Definition

Foreign non-paid faculty appointments are appointments for international visitors that do not involve payment of salary or other compensation but do provide an academic rank.

Non-paid faculty appointments may be granted only when a dean and the Provost of the University determine that such an appointment will advance the University’s mission. The Offer Letter must be approved by the department head, the relevant dean, and the Provost. If a school or unit wishes to extend the rights and privileges that are within its authority to convey, such as office space or other facility usage, such rights and privileges must also be stipulated as part of the Offer Letter. The purpose of this web application is to collect the relevant data associated with the offer. The application will utilize the data to generate a PDF Offer Letter and send a visit screening request to the Export Compliance Office (when required for foreign visits).

The Process

  1. Log in to the Contracts and Appointments website. To request access credentials, contact Rebecca Follman (rfollman@umd.edu).
  2. Complete the New Non-Paid Foreign Appointment form with all required details of the appointment.
  3. If a Foreign Visit Request screening is required by the Export Compliance Office (see below for criteria), complete the screening request after you have filled out the Non-Paid Foreign Appointment form. If a screening is not required, advance to Step 4.
  4. Wait for Foreign Visit Request screening approval (allow 2-3 business days for processing).
  5. Using the web application, generate a PDF Offer Letter and send to appointee’s institution for approval.
  6. Create the appointment in PHR for institutional approval.
  7. Once the PHR appointment has been approved, initiate the Visa request in ARS/iTerp if the University is sponsoring the visitor's visa.
  8. Manually route the paper Offer Letter for signature by the faculty host, department/unit head, dean, and Provost.
  9. After the paper Offer Letter has been signed and PHR appointment approved, return a scan of the Offer Letter to appointee's institution and send a CC to export@umd.edu.

Foreign Visitor Screenings

  1. When to request a foreign visitor screening:
    The foreign visitor screening process must be completed before sending an invitation, submitting a non-paid or paid appointment to the Academic Resource System (ARS) and before OIS applies for a visa.
  2. Foreign visitors who do not require screening:
    1. Screening is not required for students who have applied, been accepted and/or are enrolled in any degree granting program that the University of Maryland offers;
    2. Screening is not required for foreign visitors who provide documentation they hold permanent resident alien status in the U.S. (i.e., hold a green card) or have been granted asylum or refugee status by the U.S.
  3. Foreign visitors who must be screened (if neither of the above criteria apply)
    1. Visitors who are nationals/citizens of Iran, Sudan, Syria, Cuba or North Korea must undergo foreign entity screening regardless of length of stay and regardless of the activity in which they will be participating at UMD.
    2. All other foreign visitors, regardless of length of stay, who will collaborate or participate in University research or training in the biological or physical sciences, engineering, mathematics, information security (including encryption), software development, or related technologies and fields, whether or not the collaboration occurs within the scope of a sponsored research agreement, must also undergo screening.
    3. All visitors who will be the subject of an H-1B, H-1B1 Chile/Singapore, L1, or O-1A nonimmigrant worker petition to be filed by UMD.
  4. Screening not required?
    If the answer to either 2A or 2B is “Yes”, or the answers to 3A, 3B and 3C are “No”, then a screening is not required for the visitor. The department should insert a note in the ARS comment screen that “No entity screening is required because [citing the applicable reason set forth above].” Then route the appointment through the normal ARS process.
  5. How to initiate a foreign visit request:
    Click here to complete the foreign visit request form. You will need to log in with your regular University credentials. Please allow a 3 workday turnaround time for processing. Additional time may be required if there is an issue with the individual or entity being screened. After submitting the form, request to expedite the screening process can be sent to: export@umd.edu.