International Students
International students with an F1 or J1 visa are required to have health insurance either through Virginia Tech's Aetna Student Health Insurance Plan or a comparable plan. If you want to opt out of the Aetna Plan, read the insurance requirements and complete the waiver form below.
*These requirements apply for international students with a F1 visa that are taking 3 or more credit hours and all international students with an J1 visa. *
- The policy must offer adequate care within a 50-mile radius of the campus enrollment.
- The policy deductible must be $500 per accident or illness or less.
- The policy must have major medical benefits of at least $500,000 per accident or illness.
- The policy must provide a minimum of $25,000 for repatriation of remains AND $50,000 medical evacuation to the home country.
- Medical expenses for pregnancy, childbirth and complications of pregnancy must be treated as any other illness under the policy, regardless of gender.
- The policy must offer prescription medication coverage (after co-pays) with a minimum of $500,000 per insured per policy year.
- The policy must cover outpatient and inpatient mental health care as any other illness.
- The policy must have NO internal caps coverage, including services, treatment or surgery.
- The policy must have NO pre-existing condition waiting period
- For students entering in the Fall: The coverage of the policy must be valid from either August 1, 2023 or the first day of classes (August 21, 2023) begin at Virginia Tech until July 31, 2024 or, if graduating, the last day of the month of the student’s graduation.
- For students entering in the Spring: The coverage of the policy must be valid from either January 1, 2024 or the first day of classes (January 16, 2023) begin at Virginia Tech until July 31, 2023 or, if graduating, the last day of the month of the student’s graduation.
Insurance Waiver
If you have purchased alternative insurance that is comparable to the Virginia Tech plan and meets the requirements listed above, you can submit a waiver requesting exemption from the university requirement.
NOTE: Waiver will be available for submission beginning July 1st!
Instructions to upload waiver
What happens after I submit my waiver?
You will receive an email with a copy of your waiver submission. The Student Medical Insurance Office has up to 10 business days to review your waiver.
If your waiver is accepted, you will receive an email from smi@vt.edu stating that your waiver has been approved.
If your waiver is rejected, you will receive an email from smi@vt.edu noting the requriement that has not been met. If you need clarification on what this means, please contact our office. If your waiver is rejected due to lack of documentation, please work with your insurance provider to find the missing documentation and submit a new insurance waiver.
If you feel that your waiver has been rejected in error, or if you believe there is a reason you should be exempt from the university requriement, you can complete a waiver appeal form and submit this to the Student Medical Insurance Office for further review.