Post-Completion OPT

• A student must not have been previously authorized for 12 months of OPT at the current degree level
• A student does not need to have a pending job offer letter to apply for post-completion OPT
• Employment may not begin until the OPT application has been approved by USCIS and the student has received their Employment Authorization Document (EAD card)
• The recommended employment start date must be after the student's official program end date (usually commencement) and no later than the end of their 60-day grace period
• Employment must be within the student's field of study
• Students must work a minimum of 20 hours (part-time) or more (full-time) per week on OPT to maintain F-1 status
• Students may have no more than 90 days of unemployment during the 12-month period for which OPT is authorized
• Students may hold multiple jobs on OPT, simultaneously if desired, as long as all employment held is within the student's field of study
• OPT employment may be paid or unpaid
• Note that, on average, it takes USCIS between 2-3 months to approve an OPT application and mail a student the EAD card

Post-completion OPT timing considerations

• Students may apply up to 90 days before their anticipated program end date and up to 60 days after their program end date. For most students, the program end date is defined as Ohio State's official commencement date. However, there are exceptions:
  • End of Semester Option (Graduate Students Only): for immigration purposes, students participating in the university-recognized "end-of-semester graduation" will have an official program end date reflecting the end-of-semester deadline established by the Graduate School
  • Graduate students who have completed all coursework and anticipate completing their degree in one academic year may apply for post-completion OPT prior to their commencement date; these students may use as an end date the commencement date for any term after their post-candidacy
  • Graduate students may elect to use their thesis or dissertation defense date as the program end date. To do so, students must submit a letter on departmental letterhead written by the academic advisor or department chair confirming the defense date. This option is beneficial for students who have a job offer to begin prior to commencement.
• The post-completion OPT application must be received by USCIS within 30 days of the immigration coordinator's signature on the properly endorsed Form I-20
• Travel warning: students may not leave the United States after the program completion date has passed (after commencement) and re-enter to apply for post-completion OPT, even if the student is within their 60-day grace period

Maintaining status and reporting

It is your responsibility to follow reporting guidelines while on OPT.

Students interested in post-completion OPT should:

1. Watch the OPT Workshop
2. Complete the Application Form – Post-Completion OPT ( c ) ( 3 ) ( B )
3. Submit the completed application form and wait 3-5 business days for processing
4. Obtain an updated Form I-20 endorsed for post-completion OPT
5. Hand-sign the updated Form I-20 before making the scan to be included in your application packet (do not sign the I-20 electronically even if submitting the I-765 electronically)
6. File the completed application online or mail the completed application packet to USCIS within 30 days of the Form I-20 issuance date; failure to do so will result in denial of the application

Links

• Application Form – Post-Completion OPT ( c ) ( 3 ) ( B )
• Form I-765
• OPT Application Materials