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United States · Work visa

OPT / STEM OPT (F-1 Work Authorization)

Processing
2-5 months
Cost
From $470
Validity
12 months of post-completion OPT

Employment authorization for F-1 students in their field of study. Twelve months after graduation, extendable by a further 24 months for a qualifying STEM degree.

Requirements

  • Valid F-1 status, maintained for at least one full academic year
  • The work must be directly related to your major field of study
  • A DSO recommendation on an updated Form I-20 before you file
  • STEM extension: a degree on the DHS STEM Designated Degree Program List, and an employer enrolled in E-Verify

Restrictions

  • Post-completion OPT allows 90 days of unemployment in total; the STEM extension raises the combined limit to 150
  • Work must stay related to the field of study, and STEM OPT also requires a bona fide employer-employee relationship
  • Not a status of its own: it ends when F-1 status ends
  • Each higher level of study grants one new period of OPT; it is not renewable within the same degree level

Time and cost

Processing time
2-5 months for the I-765
Validity
12 months of post-completion OPT, plus a 24-month STEM extension where the degree and employer qualify
Cost

From $470

Required

  • $470 Form I-765 (online; on paper $520)
Path to residency
The usual bridge to H-1B, and from there to employer-sponsored EB-2 or EB-3

Documents

  • Form I-765

    Application for Employment Authorization, filed with USCIS

    Processing: Typically 2-5 months; file early

  • Form I-20 with the OPT recommendation

    Issued by your DSO before you file the I-765

  • Employment Authorization Document (EAD)

    You cannot begin work until the EAD is issued and its start date has arrived

  • Form I-983 training plan (if it applies)

    STEM extension only; signed by you and the employer

Your family

Status your spouse and unmarried children under 21 can hold alongside this route. Children can study on it too.

F-2 DependentSpouse cannot work

Your spouse cannot work in the US on F-2 status.

  • Your spouse can only study part-time
  • F-2 visa applicants must set all social-media profiles to public or open for State Department online-presence review

Tips

  • File the I-765 as early as 90 days before your program end date; the window closes 60 days after it
  • Pre-completion OPT is also available during study, but every month used is deducted from the 12 months available afterwards
  • Cap-gap relief can extend F-1 status and OPT for a student whose employer files a timely H-1B change-of-status petition