New F-1 Rule Could Delay OPT Hiring and Interrupt Employment

The US Department of Homeland Security recently published a new final rule for F-1 students. While the rule does not eliminate Optional Practical Training (OPT) or STEM OPT, it will require many F-1 students to obtain an extension of stay in addition to an employment authorization document, creating a greater risk of delayed start dates and interruptions in employment.

OVERVIEW

On July 17, 2026, the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a final rule replacing “duration of status” admission for F-1 students with admission through a fixed expiration date. The rule is scheduled to take effect on September 15, 2026.[1]

The rule does not impose a new numerical limit on OPT and does not prohibit employers from hiring F-1 students who have valid employment authorization. Its practical effect is nevertheless significant. In many cases, the student’s ability to begin or continue OPT employment will depend on two separate US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) adjudications: an extension of F-1 stay on Form I-539 and employment authorization on Form I-765.

The Wall Street Journal has described OPT as an important entry point for employers, particularly in technology and financial services, that hire recent graduates before pursuing longer-term status, such as H-1B classification. The publication noted that the additional extension process may introduce uncertainty into that hiring pipeline.[2]

WHAT EMPLOYERS SHOULD DO

Although the final rule does not take effect until September 15, 2026, employers that hire or employ F-1 students should begin preparing for the additional timing and administrative issues it may create. The following steps can help reduce delays and unexpected interruptions in employment:

• Plan earlier for OPT start dates: Ask candidates to coordinate with their designated school official and immigration counsel well before graduation, and build flexibility into anticipated start dates.
• Determine whether transition relief applies: Confirm that the student was in qualifying duration-of-status admission on September 15, 2026, that the Form I-765 will be filed by March 18, 2027, and that travel has not altered the student’s admission framework.
• Do not assume that a requested OPT start date will be available: For students who require Form I-539, employment generally cannot begin until both the extension of stay and the employment authorization document (EAD) are approved.
• Distinguish EAD validity from underlying F-1 status: The existing STEM OPT automatic extension may preserve employment authorization while Form I-765 is pending, but it does not necessarily resolve a separate fixed-admission or extension-of-stay issue.
• Continue following existing Form I-9 rules unless DHS issues new guidance: A facially valid EAD remains an acceptable List A document. Additional monitoring of Form I-94 and Form I-539 information may be prudent, but the final rule does not clearly make it a required part of Form I-9 completion or reverification.
• Escalate known adverse developments: If the employer learns that a required extension has been denied, withdrawn, or abandoned, it should promptly assess the employee’s continued authorization based on the complete facts rather than relying solely on the printed EAD expiration date.
• Coordinate OPT hiring with longer-term sponsorship: The additional adjudication step and shorter 30-day departure period reduce the time available to address delayed filings, travel issues, or alternative immigration strategies.
• Consider who will manage and fund the filings. Form I-539 is generally understood as the student’s own application to extend or change immigration status, rather than an employer petition filed on behalf of a current or prospective employee. Form I-765 likewise remains the individual’s application for employment authorization, even when the requested authorization is directly connected to employment with a particular employer.

The new rule may nevertheless require employers to reconsider how they approach these filings. Where an employee cannot begin or continue working unless both applications are timely prepared and approved, the process may function in practice more like employer-sponsored immigration support than a purely personal filing. Employers may therefore wish to adopt a consistent policy addressing the following:

• Whether the employee is expected to prepare and file the applications independently
• Whether the employer will provide immigration counsel or reimburse filing and legal fees
• Whether employer support will differ for current employees and prospective hires
• Who will monitor filing deadlines, requests for evidence, and adjudication outcomes
• How delays or denials will affect start dates, continued employment, and leave arrangements

There is no single required approach. Employers should, however, make the allocation of responsibility clear at the outset and apply it consistently, particularly because a failure or delay in the individual filing may directly affect the employer’s ability to employ the student.

Employers should also recognize that aspects of the relationship between a student’s fixed admission period, a pending or denied Form I-539, and the existing Form I-9 rules remains unsettled, as discussed below.

Fixed Admission Dates Replace Duration of Status

Under the current system, most F-1 students are admitted for “duration of status,” commonly reflected as “D/S” on Form I-94. A student generally may remain in the United States while pursuing an authorized course of study or authorized practical training, provided the student continues to comply with the requirements of F-1 status.

Under the final rule, an F-1 student generally will be admitted through the program end date listed on Form I-20, subject to a maximum admission period of four years, plus a 30-day period for departure or to seek another lawful status. A student who needs additional time generally must either apply to USCIS for an extension of stay or depart the United States and seek readmission for a new fixed period.

OPT MAY REQUIRE TWO SEPARATE APPLICATIONS

A student seeking post-completion OPT currently obtains a recommendation from the school’s designated school official and files Form I-765 for an EAD. Under the new rule, a student whose fixed admission period does not extend through the requested OPT period generally must file both Form I-765 for employment authorization and Form I-539 to extend F-1 stay.

The applications may be filed concurrently. A student whose authorized admission expires at program completion generally may not begin post-completion OPT until USCIS has approved both the Form I-539 and the Form I-765. A timely filed Form I-539 may place the student in a period of authorized stay while it remains pending, but it does not by itself authorize OPT employment.

This creates a new source of start-date uncertainty. A student may receive an EAD—or reach the requested OPT start date—while the related extension request remains pending. In that situation, the student generally may not begin employment until the extension is also approved.

DHS HAS MADE A POLICY COMMITMENT TO COORDINATED ADJUDICATION

In the preamble to the final rule, DHS states that when USCIS receives either an extension request or an employment authorization application, the adjudicating officer will search DHS systems for a related filing. DHS further states that, if a related application is located, the two cases “will be adjudicated together to avoid gaps in authorization.”[3]

This is a meaningful policy commitment and may reduce the risk that one application will remain pending long after the other is decided. It is not, however, incorporated into the regulatory text as a binding adjudication deadline or sequencing requirement. The rule does not establish premium processing for the Form I-539, require USCIS to decide both applications by the requested OPT start date, or provide an automatic employment authorization remedy if coordinated adjudication does not occur. Employers therefore should not treat simultaneous approval as assured.

STEM OPT RETAINS ITS EXISTING AUTOMATIC EAD EXTENSION

The final rule preserves the existing provision that automatically extends a qualifying student’s employment authorization for up to 180 days when the student timely files Form I-765 for a STEM OPT extension. This may reduce immediate disruption for a student already working under an initial OPT EAD.

The automatic EAD extension does not necessarily resolve the separate extension-of-stay issue. A student may still need Form I-539 approval if the fixed admission period does not cover the requested STEM OPT period. The EAD-extension period and the student’s authorized period of admission or stay therefore may not always align.

TRANSITION RELIEF IS USEFUL BUT LIMITED

The rule includes transition relief for qualifying F-1 students who were admitted for duration of status, are present in the United States, and are maintaining status on September 15, 2026. A qualifying student who timely files Form I-765 for post-completion OPT or STEM OPT on or before March 18, 2027 generally will not be required to file Form I-539 for the requested practical-training period.

As a practical matter, the filing deadline limits the benefit principally to students graduating in winter 2026 and to spring 2027 graduates who become eligible to file and submit their OPT applications early. Under the existing filing window, a student may generally file for post-completion OPT up to 90 days before the program end date. Many May 2027 graduates therefore may qualify if they file by March 18, but students graduating later in spring or summer 2027 may not. The transition provision should accordingly be viewed as short-term relief for a relatively narrow cohort, not as a broad phase-in of the new system.

INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL CAN ELIMINATE TRANSITION PROTECTION

Travel after the effective date can move a student from the duration-of-status transition framework into the new fixed-date admission system. A student who departs and is readmitted on or after September 15, 2026 generally will receive a date-specific Form I-94 and may become subject to the new extension requirements.

NAFSA has identified a related travel provision as concerning and in need of clarification. In particular, NAFSA notes that the regulatory language addressing students who travel while an OPT or STEM OPT Form I-765 remains pending is difficult to interpret and may create uncertainty regarding the interaction among readmission, the EAD expiration date, and the fixed admission date.[4]

Students relying on the transition provisions should therefore obtain individualized advice before international travel. Employers should avoid assuming that a student who qualified for transition relief before departure will necessarily retain that treatment following readmission.

THE RULE DOES NOT CLEARLY CHANGE FORM I-9 DOCUMENT REVIEW

An unexpired EAD is a List A document that establishes both identity and employment authorization for Form I-9 purposes. Under current Form I-9 rules, an employer generally must accept a document that reasonably appears genuine and relates to the employee and may not demand additional documentation because of citizenship, immigration status, or national origin.

The final rule does not expressly amend the Form I-9 document-review rules to require an employer to review a student’s Form I-94, Form I-539 receipt notice, or extension approval when the student presents a facially valid EAD. It is therefore unclear whether the new extension-of-stay framework will create any additional employer verification obligation absent further DHS or USCIS guidance.

The individual immigration consequences are clearer. If a student works after the fixed Form I-94 admission period has expired without an approved extension or another applicable basis for authorized stay and employment, that work is unauthorized even if the EAD bears a later expiration date. The final rule does not fully address how an employer should reconcile that circumstance with the existing Form I-9 document rules.

An employer may elect as a compliance and risk-management measure to track the status of a required Form I-539 in addition to the EAD expiration date. The rule does not clearly establish that such tracking is required for Form I-9 purposes. Employers that adopt additional tracking procedures should apply them consistently and should avoid requesting documents in a manner that conflicts with the employee-choice and anti-discrimination provisions applicable to Form I-9 verification.

THE RULE ALSO AFFECTS J-1 EXCHANGE VISITORS AND FOREIGN MEDIA REPRESENTATIVES

The final rule replaces duration-of-status admission for certain J-1 exchange visitors (e.g., long term academic exchange visitors, physicians, scholars, researchers) and most I representatives of foreign information media with fixed Form I-94 expiration dates. Employers and program sponsors should identify individuals whose programs or assignments may continue beyond those dates and determine whether an extension filing or travel and readmission will be required.

Under the new rule, a J-1 generally will be admitted through the Form DS-2019 end date, subject to a maximum of four years per admission period. If the program continues beyond the Form I-94 expiration date, the exchange visitor generally must obtain an extended Form DS-2019 and timely file Form I-539, unless the individual departs and is readmitted. A timely filed extension allows continued program participation and, where authorized, continued employment through the applicable interim period while the application is pending.

Most I nonimmigrants will be admitted for the time needed to complete the qualifying assignment, not to exceed 240 days. Each extension is likewise limited to 240 days, although successive extensions are permitted. Long-term foreign-media assignments may therefore require repeated Form I-539 filings. A timely filed I extension generally allows continued employment with the same employer for up to 240 days after the Form I-94 expires, or for the shorter period requested, while the application is pending.

Employers should remain informed of implementation guidance, litigation, or agency actions that change the effective date or clarify the interaction among fixed admission dates, pending extension applications, EAD validity, and Form I-9 obligations.