{"id":9666,"date":"2022-07-21T12:07:02","date_gmt":"2022-07-21T22:07:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/issmanoa\/?page_id=9666"},"modified":"2026-01-14T16:15:40","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T02:15:40","slug":"optional-practical-training-opt","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/issmanoa\/?page_id=9666","title":{"rendered":"F-1 Optional Practical Training (OPT)"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pl-9666\"  class=\"panel-layout\" ><div id=\"pg-9666-0\"  class=\"panel-grid panel-no-style\" ><div id=\"pgc-9666-0-0\"  class=\"panel-grid-cell\" ><div id=\"panel-9666-0-0-0\" class=\"so-panel widget_sow-editor panel-first-child\" data-index=\"0\" ><div\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tclass=\"so-widget-sow-editor so-widget-sow-editor-base\"\n\t\t\t\n\t\t><h2 class=\"widget-title\">What is OPT?<\/h2>\n<div class=\"siteorigin-widget-tinymce textwidget\">\n\t<p>Optional Practical Training (OPT) is one type of work permission available for eligible F-1 students. It allows students to get real-world work experience related to their field of study.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Any work under OPT must be directly related to the student\u2019s major.<\/li>\n<li>OPT is not tied to degree program requirements.<\/li>\n<li>Once used, OPT is only available again at a higher degree level. For example, if you use OPT for a master\u2019s degree, you may get OPT again if you enroll in a doctoral degree. However, you do not get OPT again if you enroll in another master\u2019s degree or lower level.<\/li>\n<li>While on OPT, you will remain in F-1 status.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>There are three types of OPT, each with its own eligibility and reporting requirements:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/issmanoa\/?page_id=15299\">Pre-Completion OPT<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/issmanoa\/?page_id=15244\">Post-Completion OPT<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/issmanoa\/?page_id=15301\">OPT STEM Extension<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><div id=\"panel-9666-0-0-1\" class=\"so-panel widget_sow-editor\" data-index=\"1\" ><div\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tclass=\"so-widget-sow-editor so-widget-sow-editor-base\"\n\t\t\t\n\t\t><h2 class=\"widget-title\">Notes on Filing an Application with USCIS<\/h2>\n<div class=\"siteorigin-widget-tinymce textwidget\">\n\t<h2>Online Filing<\/h2>\n<p>ISS recommends online filing over paper filing, which uses traditional mailing. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uscis.gov\/g-1055?form=i-765\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">filing fee for online I-765 applications<\/a> is also slightly less than the paper-filing fee, and processing times seem to be faster. The following instructions relate to online filing only.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Before submitting an application to USCIS, you must submit an OPT request to ISS first in order to get the I-20 with OPT recommendation.<\/strong> This allows ISS to review your application materials before submission to USCIS. Without the I-20 with OPT recommendation, your I-765 application will be automatically denied and you will not be able to get a refund of the filing fee.<\/p>\n<h2>Premium Processing<\/h2>\n<p>USCIS provides \"premium processing\" for OPT applications. This request guarantees a decision within 30 days of the receipt date of the I-765 application. On the online form, one of the first questions will be whether an applicant wishes to file a Premium Processing request (form I-907). This requires you to pay an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uscis.gov\/g-1055?form=i-907\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">I-907 fee<\/a> in addition to the I-765 filing fee. As an applicant, you must decide if a quick decision is worth the fee. It will depend on how early you file your application in relation to the OPT requested start date. Although you may not wish to pay for Premium Processing initially, you still have the option of requesting it later while your OPT application is pending.<\/p>\n<h2>Processing Times<\/h2>\n<p>USCIS processing times for OPT applications vary, based on changing government operations, workforce numbers, policies, etc. ISS recommends that you consider 3 months when planning your application timeline. To view USCIS posted average processing times for OPT applications, go to the <a href=\"https:\/\/egov.uscis.gov\/processing-times\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">USCIS Processing Times webpage<\/a>. On the drop-down menu for \"Form,\" choose \"I-765 | Application for Employment Authorization.\" For \"Form Category,\" choose \"Based on a request for a qualified F-1 academic student [(c)(3)].\" The \"Field Office or Service Center\" is \"Service Center Operations (SCOPS).\" Then click on \"Get processing time\" for the current information. Note that your application's actual processing time may differ from this average.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><div id=\"panel-9666-0-0-2\" class=\"so-panel widget_sow-editor panel-last-child\" data-index=\"2\" ><div\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tclass=\"so-widget-sow-editor so-widget-sow-editor-base\"\n\t\t\t\n\t\t><h2 class=\"widget-title\">Important Reminder For Those Considering Post-Completion OPT<\/h2>\n<div class=\"siteorigin-widget-tinymce textwidget\">\n\t<p>ISS requires you to keep your Â鶹´«Ã½email account active if you are going to be on OPT. You may do this by enrolling in the\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/askus\/1137\">Â鶹´«Ã½'Ohana Online Services<\/a>. If you have not graduated yet, you may pre-enroll. If you graduated but forgot to enroll, you have a 180 day grace period in which you may enroll.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/askus\/86\">Read the 'Ohana Online Services policies<\/a>. Once you sign up, your Â鶹´«Ã½email will remain active up to one year. You will need to renew annually, and will receive alerts to do so. If you fail to sign up or renew your Â鶹´«Ã½email account in time, your account will be closed and all associated emails and stored content will be wiped.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Optional Practical Training (OPT) is one type of work permission available for eligible F-1 students. It allows students to get [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":8476,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37,78],"tags":[50],"class_list":["post-9666","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","category-f-1","category-opt-pages","tag-opt","post"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>F-1 Optional Practical Training (OPT) - International Student Services<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/issmanoa\/?page_id=9666\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"F-1 Optional Practical Training (OPT) - International Student Services\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Optional Practical Training (OPT) is one type of work permission available for eligible F-1 students. 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