Updated November 12, 2026

F-1 visa OPT: eligibility, filing timeline, Form I-765, unemployment rules, and STEM extension

Optional Practical Training (OPT) lets eligible F-1 students work in the United States in jobs directly related to their major for up to 12 months per higher degree level, plus an extra 24 months for qualifying STEM degrees under USCIS rules. For post-completion OPT, you must request an OPT recommendation from your school's DSO and file Form I-765 with USCIS no earlier than 90 days before your program end date, no later than 60 days after it, and within 30 days of your DSO entering the recommendation in SEVIS. You cannot start working until USCIS approves Form I-765, you receive your Employment Authorization Document (EAD), and the start date on the card arrives.

Pre-completion vs. post-completion OPT and eligibility rules

Under USCIS and ICE Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) rules, Optional Practical Training is temporary employment directly related to your major area of study. You can receive up to 12 months of standard OPT authorization at each higher educational level, such as a bachelor's degree, then a master's degree, and then a doctorate. You can split that 12-month allowance across two degrees at the same level only if your DSO explicitly notes the split in SEVIS when requesting the first segment.

To qualify, you must be lawfully enrolled full time for at least one full academic year at an ICE SEVP-certified college, university, conservatory, or seminary while maintaining valid F-1 status. Prior full-time study in another valid nonimmigrant status counts toward that academic year if you hold F-1 status when you apply. Under the USCIS Policy Manual, study abroad counts too if you completed at least one full academic term (one semester, trimester, or quarter) in a full course of study in the United States before studying abroad. Students in an associate's, bachelor's, master's, or doctoral program who have finished all coursework except a thesis or equivalent also qualify for post-completion OPT.

Two rules block standard OPT eligibility. Students in English language training programs cannot use OPT. Completing 1 year (12 months) or more of full-time Curricular Practical Training (CPT) at the same educational level also makes you ineligible for post-completion OPT at that level, including full-time CPT from a previous school at the same level. Part-time CPT and CPT at another degree level do not reduce or block your OPT.

Any pre-completion OPT approved during your degree reduces the post-completion OPT left at that same level. USCIS deducts authorized time rather than actual hours worked, so overtime or unemployed weeks do not change the deduction.

How pre-completion and post-completion OPT compare under USCIS rules

Post-completion OPT timeline, the 30-day DSO rule, and a worked date example

Every post-completion OPT filing must satisfy two USCIS clocks at once. First, USCIS must receive your Form I-765 inside a 150-day window opening 90 days before your program end date and closing 60 days after it. Second, within that window, USCIS must receive your Form I-765 within 30 days after your DSO enters the OPT recommendation into SEVIS.

Study in the States warns that filing Form I-765 before your DSO enters the recommendation in SEVIS, or more than 30 days after that entry, causes an automatic USCIS denial and forfeits your filing fee. For pre-completion OPT, you may file after your DSO's SEVIS recommendation and up to 90 days before completing one full academic year, provided your work start date falls after you finish that academic year.

When requesting post-completion OPT, you pick a start date on your program end date or up to 60 days after it. Under the USCIS Policy Manual, authorization begins on the date your DSO requested or the date USCIS adjudicates Form I-765, whichever is later, and all post-completion OPT must conclude within 14 months of completing your study. Filing late in your 60-day grace period can cut into your 12-month allowance if approval arrives near that 14-month ceiling.

Worked timeline example written by our team: Suppose you finish your degree on May 15, 2027, with no prior pre-completion OPT. By our calculation from USCIS filing rules, your earliest filing date (90 days before May 15) is February 14, 2027, and both your latest filing deadline and latest selectable OPT start date (60 days after May 15) fall on July 14, 2027. If your DSO enters your OPT recommendation in SEVIS on March 1, 2027, USCIS must receive Form I-765 by March 31, 2027. All initial post-completion OPT for a May 15 completion date must end by July 15, 2028.

Step-by-step Form I-765 filing checklist, editions, and fees

You do not need a job offer to request initial post-completion OPT in SEVIS or to file Form I-765 with USCIS. Follow this 6-step filing checklist from our team, built from USCIS Form I-765 instructions and SEVIS Help Hub procedures, in exact order.

Check two 2026 alerts on USCIS Form I-765 and Form G-1055 pages before filing. On September 14, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts postponed the July 17, 2026 final rule on fixed admission periods for F students, so USCIS continues to accept the 08/21/25 edition of Form I-765 and does not accept the 09/15/26 edition. Also ignore rumors mixing up H-1B litigation or proposed rules with active OPT fees: DHS published a proposed rule on OPT fees on October 8, 2026 (a proposal, not an active fee), and the $100,000 (uscis.gov, as of October 2026) payment guidance vacated on June 8, 2026 applied only to certain H-1B petitions, never to Form I-765.

Online filers pay via Pay.gov. Mail filers pay with Form G-1450 (card) or Form G-1650 (U.S. bank ACH), unless exempt via Form G-1651, and cash is never accepted.

• Step 1: Request your OPT recommendation from your DSO and confirm your Form I-20 program end date is accurate (DSOs shorten it first if you finish early).
• Step 2: Receive your updated Form I-20 showing Requested status in SEVIS and sign page 1 yourself before scanning or copying.
• Step 3: File Form I-765 (08/21/25 edition) online in your USCIS account, or print every page from the 08/21/25 edition, sign by hand, and clip Form G-1145 on top for Lockbox text or email alerts.
• Step 4: Enter the exact code in Item 27: (c)(3)(A) for pre-completion OPT, (c)(3)(B) for post-completion OPT, or (c)(3)(C) for a 24-month STEM OPT extension.
• Step 5: Submit unmounted, unretouched passport photos with your signed OPT Form I-20 and identity records (edited photos delay processing and can trigger an Application Support Center check).
• Step 6: Submit with the Form G-1055 fee so USCIS receives it within 30 days of the SEVIS recommendation (60 days for STEM OPT). EAD cards are normally produced within 2 weeks of approval and sent by USPS Priority Mail. Wait 30 days from approval before submitting a non-delivery inquiry.

The 90-day unemployment rule and allowed job types on OPT vs. STEM OPT

Once the start date on your approved post-completion EAD arrives, any day your SEVIS record lacks qualifying employer details counts toward unemployment. Standard post-completion OPT allows up to 90 cumulative unemployment days. A 24-month STEM OPT extension adds 60 days, for 150 cumulative days across both periods combined. SEVP officers can manually terminate SEVIS records that exceed the 90-day or 150-day limit.

Every OPT role must relate directly to your major and average at least 20 hours per week on post-completion OPT. Initial 12-month OPT allows flexible arrangements to stop your unemployment clock legally, whereas STEM OPT requires E-Verify, commensurate pay, and direct employer supervision.

Allowed employment arrangements on initial post-completion OPT vs. 24-month STEM OPT

24-month STEM OPT extension, Form I-983, and SEVP reporting

F-1 students in active post-completion OPT can apply for a 24-month STEM OPT extension (up to 36 months total) if they hold a bachelor's, master's, or doctoral degree with a CIP code on the DHS STEM Designated Degree Program List from a currently SEVP-certified, Department of Education-accredited school. You can also use a prior U.S. STEM degree conferred within the 10 years before your DSO's recommendation if the school is currently accredited and SEVP-certified, the CIP code is on the current STEM list, you never used that degree for STEM OPT before, and your job directly relates to that prior STEM degree. USCIS caps students at two lifetime 24-month STEM extensions, with the second at a higher degree level.

Before your DSO recommends STEM OPT, you and your employer must sign Form I-983 (Training Plan for STEM OPT Students). Your employer must be in good standing in E-Verify, hold an IRS EIN, supervise you using its own employees or directly retained contractors (never client staff and never another F-1 student on OPT or STEM OPT), and attest you will not replace a U.S. worker. DHS can conduct site visits to verify compliance. File Form I-765 under category (c)(3)(C) with your employer's E-Verify name and identification number, STEM degree copy (plus transcripts if using a prior degree), and STEM Form I-20 up to 90 days before your EAD expires and within 60 days of the DSO's SEVIS recommendation. Timely filing automatically extends work authorization for up to 180 days while pending.

Once approved for OPT, use the SEVP Portal or report to your DSO (who updates SEVIS within 21 days) to keep your record accurate. On STEM OPT, you cannot edit an employer start date in the SEVP Portal, and employers must report your termination or departure to your DSO within 5 business days.

• Within 10 days (all OPT and STEM OPT): Report changes to your legal name, residential or mailing address, email, employer name or address, or loss of employment.
• Within 10 days of starting a new STEM job, or at the earliest opportunity for material changes: Submit a new or modified signed Form I-983 to your DSO.
• At 6, 12, 18, and 24 months (STEM validation reports): Confirm to your DSO within 10 business days that your name, address, employer details, and status remain accurate, even if unchanged.
• At 12 months, 24 months, and job end (STEM self-evaluations): Submit your supervisor-signed Form I-983 evaluation to your DSO within 10 days after each mark or early job end.

H-1B cap-gap extension rules for F-1 students on OPT

Employers cannot file cap-subject H-1B petitions earlier than April 1 for an October 1 fiscal year start date. Under the USCIS Policy Manual, an automatic cap-gap extension bridges both your F-1 status and OPT work authorization until October 1 when your employer timely files a cap-subject H-1B change-of-status petition (not consular processing) requesting an October 1 start date while your OPT EAD is still unexpired.

If your employer files the H-1B change-of-status petition after your EAD expires, during your 60-day grace period, cap-gap extends your F-1 status (and F-2 dependents' status) until October 1 without extending work authorization. You must stop working when your EAD expires.

Unemployment days keep counting toward your 90-day or 150-day limit during cap-gap. If USCIS rejects, denies, revokes, or withdraws the H-1B petition or change of status, you generally receive a 60-day grace period from the notice date or OPT end date, whichever is later, unless denied or revoked for fraud, misrepresentation, or a status violation.

International travel rules across each OPT stage

CBP officers decide admission at the port of entry. Under ICE SEVP rules, continuing F-1 absences must be less than 5 months, and your passport must be valid at least 6 months beyond reentry unless your country is exempt through expiration. An expired F-1 visa stamp is fine inside the United States, though returning from abroad requires a valid F-1 visa unless you use automatic visa revalidation after a trip of less than 30 days to Canada, Mexico, or qualifying adjacent islands with a valid Form I-20, unexpired Form I-94, and no new visa application during the trip.

International travel rules and port-of-entry documents by OPT stage (ICE SEVP and USCIS Policy Manual)

Withdrawals, denials, school transfers, and border questions

While your SEVIS OPT status says Requested, your DSO can cancel the request directly in SEVIS (SEVIS also auto-cancels Requested entries after 180 days). Once USCIS receives Form I-765 and SEVIS changes to Pending, your DSO cannot cancel it. You must mail a written withdrawal with your Form I-797 receipt number to the USCIS Service Center on your receipt.

If USCIS denies post-completion OPT, you can refile with a new DSO recommendation and fee only before your 60-day post-graduation window closes. Otherwise, your F-1 status expires 60 days from your program end date or the denial date, whichever is later. If STEM OPT is denied after your initial EAD expired, work authorization ends immediately and F-1 status ends 60 days later. Denials for failing to maintain F-1 status carry no grace period and require immediate departure.

Transferring schools or starting a new degree level automatically terminates your OPT and EAD on the SEVIS release or program change date. Stop working immediately on that date to keep valid student status. When renewing an F-1 visa or speaking with CBP while on OPT, carry your physical EAD, travel-signed OPT Form I-20, and employer letter, and be ready to explain how your daily duties match your degree.

Practice example

You already graduated. Why are you returning to the United States on an F-1 visa, and how does your OPT job relate to your major?

State in one plain sentence that you hold active F-1 status on approved post-completion OPT (or a 24-month STEM OPT extension), name your employer and job title, and give the start and end dates printed on your EAD card. Next, connect two concrete daily duties at your job directly to coursework or research from your degree so the link between your training and your major is clear. Know how many unemployment days you have used so far and confirm that you work at least 20 hours per week. Keep four items at the top of your carry-on folder ready to hand over only if asked: your physical EAD card, your Form I-20 endorsed for OPT with a current DSO travel signature, your valid passport and unexpired F-1 visa, and a current employment letter.

The officer is checking that you maintain valid F-1 status after graduation, that your job directly relates to your major area of study, that you remain within the 90-day or 150-day unemployment limit, and that you carry the physical EAD card and endorsed Form I-20 required for reentry.

This is interview practice, not legal advice. For questions about your own case, talk to an immigration attorney. Visaful is not affiliated with the U.S. government or the Department of State.