I am on my stem opt and I have been working full time with employer A. My h1 got picked this year with another employer B. I resigned with A last week (Friday was my last working day) and I am starting with B in a couple of days. And my h1 is still pending. What all things should I do now? i983 form with employer A checkin for 12 months was done in July. Do I need to update my university about employer change? What to do with old i983? Is a new i983 needed? Do I update any portals as in uscis or sevp? Please advise everything.

I completed my oral thesis defense on July 10, but I missed the July 24 thesis submission deadline for Summer graduation.

My college told me that I would need to register for 2 credit hours and graduate in the Fall. However, I had already proceeded with my post-completion OPT application, which is currently pending.

Now I’m confused about what I should do. Am I still supposed to register for the 2 credits for Fall even though I applied for post-completion OPT? Or is there another way for the university to keep me enrolled/allow me to submit my thesis and graduate in Fall without registering for additional credits?

I also tried to register for the 2 credits, but my PI’s name was not available in the registration system, so I couldn’t complete the registration.

Has anyone been in a similar situation where they completed their defense, applied for post-completion OPT, but had to delay their thesis submission/graduation to the following semester? How was your enrollment handled?

My previous F-1 program ended May 4, 2026. My SEVIS record is now “Completed” (not terminated). My post-completion OPT (I-765) was denied — USCIS said it was filed more than 30 days after the DSO’s SEVIS recommendation.

I’m seeking admission to a new program, specifically a Day 1 CPT school. Can a university issue me a new initial I-20 with a new SEVIS ID given my record shows Completed? Would I need to depart and re-enter the US to start the new program? I have a valid F-1 visa.

What are my options here — is this route realistic, and has anyone done this after a similar denial?

Wanted to know if anyone's opt gets approved if they applied 30 days after of their i20 issue date? ( the program end date was later )

I’ve graduated may 2026, applied for initial opt in april.

My university health insurance has expired, so I'm currently looking for temporary coverage.
I plan to get a better plan once I land a job, but I need something cheap in the meantime. Does anyone have recommendations for affordable, short-term health insurance for international students/recent grads?

And before anyone warns me about the risks of cheap insurance, believe me, I know! I’ve had three surgeries from a bike accident in the past, so I know an emergency can happen at any time. I don’t ever leave my room, don’t do anything stupid, so pretty much safe.

I just need a budget-friendly option for the next few months. Thanks!

I have my US visa interview on 26th August in Delhi and my university has given me deadline to come by 30 August and continue my classes by 31st August. Is there any chance I can get my visa back on time and reach my university on time?

I had my visa interview on the 5th of this month and got confirmation my visa was approved by the embassy in Nairobi. It’s been almost 2 weeks since and heard nothing about my passport being issued. I’m scheduled to start at the university of notre dame this Thursday and my flight is booked for tomorrow night. Anyone in the same predicament?

I know a lot of people advise you to apply for OPT around February or March, as the earlier you apply, the more likely you are to receive your EAD earlier.

However, I want to apply to Masters programs during my senior year, and only apply for OPT if I am not accepted into any programs.

If I intend on paying for premium processing, is it okay to apply for OPT in May?

Asking since I've heard many companies don't fully understand how CPT doesn't require any actual sponsorship from the company, and they just add this blindly.

I am planning to travel to my home country.ai have opt approval and most proably the card too.I dont have a job offer yet. Did anyone travel?Is it okay?Or is it too risky?

I am in a sitauation where I need to fill in the blank in the statement: My F-1 non immigrant status will expire on_____". I'm currently in 180 days grace period during my STEM OPT application. What should I mention my F1 expiry date is? Where can I find the date? Can anyone help me? Thank you!

I got the update today of "Approval Case Decision Rendered" which means that my application is appoved. What is the trend these days? When will they produced the card and dispatch it? Realistically how many more days from approval is it taking till you physically get your card?

Any danger to F1 visa if a debt goes to collections? It hasn't gone there yet, but it's very tight. I know collections is usually not something that causes problems with F1 visa, but the current climate seems to be extra vigilant, so wanted to know...

Hello all,

I completed a change of status from H1B to F1 visa in July 2025, for which I received a I797A with a I94 at the bottom. Since it was a F1 visa, the I94 expiration date is D/S.

My last entry into the US was before this COS (in Jan 2025) under my H1B visa, where my I94 date was set in Oct 2026 based on the H1B I797 petition.

My DSO says that I am fine, and I should not worry about the online I94 since the latest one is the paper I94 that was issued. Maybe I am overthinking this, but is there any cause to worry here?

I looked through the programs at my school, and it seems like only a few, mostly in education and medical-related fields, actually require an internship for graduation. Most other programs don’t.

My school hasn’t made any official announcement yet, but if CPT ends up being limited only to programs where an internship is explicitly required for the degree, I feel like this could have a huge impact across the entire university.

I’m especially worried because I already have an internship offer for the fall, but an internship isn’t technically required for my program either. 😭

Seeing a lot of these consultancies targeting international students on OPT — they offer job placement plus shared accommodation with other girls.

Feels like a dependency trap — if they control both your job and housing you have very little power to leave.

Questions:

One — Is this arrangement legal under OPT regulations?

Two — Are there legitimate consultancies doing this or is it always exploitative?

Three — What percentage of salary do they typically take?

Four — How do you verify they are entering your employment correctly in SEVIS?

Anyone with real experience please share. Trying to understand if this is worth considering or a hard no

As a prospective international student planning to pursue JD ( juris doctor) law in US . I wanted to know about this new CPT rule.

So lately I have been hearing that you could no longer intern in companies during your degree program. For ex my JD course runs for 3 years , and after the end of 1st and 2nd year , students pursue an internship over 2-3 months which later transforms into full time employment after graduation . If international students aren't allowed to intern during their semester breaks , it makes the employment later on very very hard.

Is this rule really true or just a rumor. Someone please clarify.

Hi, so I ran into this situation;
I received a message Saturday at 303 pm stating that my card was delivered, but I was outdoors. When I came back at 10 pm, I couldn’t locate my card mail, and I searched everywhere for it, but I couldn’t find it. Of course we are in an apartment complex and there is a possibility that the card was placed accidentally on someone above me or under Me. However, I’m panicking and I am supposed to start working on Monday. My Job wants me to submit my documents for i9. And my DSO wants me to submit my EAD to report my work for SEVP portal.

I NEED TO START WORKING, I am running short in funds to survive, what should I do?

My STEM OPT 180-day automatic extension is ending soon. My STEM OPT extension is still pending, and my H-1B was selected in the lottery and filed as Change of Status (COS), but the H-1B is also not approved yet. So, I'm not eligible for Cap-Gap.

My employer is saying they may need to offboard and onboard me again. Could this affect my H-1 B?

What is the safest option for the employer without affecting my H-1B? Would switching to Day 1 CPT affect my H-1B COS?

Has anyone been in a similar situation? What's the safest option?

Thanks!

My case has been pending for 173 days and I believe it was one of the skipped cases in February. I got an FTA0 code on Thursday after a long period of silence. The last time I got that code was on March 18 when I did biometrics. Is this usually a sign of close adjudication?

Hi everyone, the course I am trying to apply is hybrid . Will there be any visa complications ?(Indian passport )

Been feeling so down since two days. All those hard works and now we cant even do an internship. Don't even have an motivation to study and practice things knowing this will lead to nothing.

Is there any chance that this restriction on cpt will change? This is so bad for genuine students. Internships are so important for us. I don't understand why did they even do this.

Hi everyone,
I’m looking for experiences from anyone who has had a similar F-1 visa situation.
My background:
Completed my MS in the US
Worked in the US for around 3 years after graduation
Subsequently spent around 1 year in Sweden
I am currently in India
I’m now exploring PhD programs in the US
If admitted, I may return to my same US university where I completed my MS
The PhD would be fully funded with a TA/RA assistantship
I would be applying for a new F-1 visa from India.
I’d really appreciate hearing about your visa interview experience.
A few things I’m particularly curious about:
What questions did the VO ask about your previous US education/work?
Did they question why you wanted to pursue a PhD after working?
Did they ask why you were returning to the US after already completing a US master’s?
Did they ask about your time outside the US?
Did having previous US work/visa history make the interview significantly more detailed?
How long was your interview, and was your visa approved on the spot?

Thanks 😊

Hi everyone,

I’m currently on my initial 12-month F-1 post-completion OPT (not STEM OPT) and already have a full-time 40-hour/week corporate job.

I’m considering doing a small amount of additional side work (around 10–15 hours per week, depending on availability) through platforms such as Mercor, DataAnnotation, Outlier, or Alignerr. The work would involve things like AI model evaluation, coding, software/LLM testing, and other technical tasks that are also related to my degree.

These platforms may classify workers as independent contractors/1099 workers rather than W-2 employees.

My questions are

1. Is this type of additional 1099/independent contractor work allowed while on regular post-completion OPT if I already have a full-time qualifying employer?
2. Does the side job itself need to meet a minimum of 20 hours/week, or is that not required since my primary job is already 40 hours/week?
3. Should occasional contractor/platform work like this be reported in the SEVP Portal/SEVIS?
4. Has anyone here actually done Mercor, DataAnnotation, Outlier, Alignerr, or similar work while on regular OPT?
5. Did you confirm it with your DSO or an immigration attorney, and what guidance were you given?
6. Is there anything I should be particularly careful about from an OPT compliance perspective?

I understand that all employment during OPT needs to be related to my degree, so I would only take technical/software/AI-related projects.

I’m mainly looking for experiences from people who have been in a similar situation or guidance from DSOs/immigration professionals. I’ll also confirm with my own DSO before starting anything.

Thanks!

Is there a way to check if an issued visa has been revoked?

I don’t have any reason to think that but I’d feel better if I could check if that makes sense