StudyAbroad 101: Three USCIS announcements international students need to hear
In this week's edition, we dive deeper into what reopening of USCIS could mean for Fall '20 admits.
“Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.” — Henry Ford
Reading time 2 minutes & 31 seconds.
USCIS reopen their offices on June 4th!
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) defines the policies for international migrants to US under immigrant and non-immigrant visa status (such as F1, CPT, OPT, H1B etc).
The international student community is looking forward to three big announcements from USCIS once they reopen.
1. Relax CPT eligibility requirements
Given that borders are not yet open, some universities opting for Fall 2020 fully online, and students deferring to Spring - under current regulations, international students are not be eligible for CPT during the summer of 2020.
U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement (USICE) has relaxed the need for F1 students to be present on US soil for Fall 2019-20 academic year. However given that international students may not have an F1 visa till Spring 2021, this relaxation, even if extended to Fall 2020 admits, does not benefit them.
Announcement: F1 students do not need to hold their visa nor be present on US soil for two whole semesters to be eligible for CPT
Some schools (such as Kellogg, Tuck) are restructuring their programme to incorporate work experience as a mandatory part of their curriculum. This allows international students to bypass the eligibility requirement for CPT. Please check with your school if they are incorporating work experience as a mandatory part of your curriculum.
2. Prioritise F1 visa appointments
Given that consulates have been closed for many months, should they reopen in time for Fall 2020, USCIS should prioritise international students looking to start their in-person education ASAP.
Currently, F1 visa applicants can apply for an expedited appointment should their start date (as per I-20) is less than 60 days away. However there is no clarity if these policies will continue in these exceptional times. Even if these policies hold, we do not know the potential staffing of consulates and the number of appointments possible.
Announcement: Dedicated window for F1 visa appointments available on expedited timelines.
PS: While we would love to hear when US Consulates reopen, it is not in the purview of USCIS to make that decision or announcement.
3. Extend OPT deadline
Currently, USCIS requires international student graduates to secure a job within 60 days of graduation, and start working within 90 days of graduation.
This is one of the strictest policies globally. Other destination countries such as Canada, Australia, Germany, UK etc allow for 6-24 months to secure a job after graduating from a university in their country.
Given the current economic uncertainty and temporary hiring freezes across companies, an extension on the deadline will allow graduating class of 2020 class with more time to get recruited to their desired job profiles. Furthermore, future cohorts of international students sufficient time to get recruited to the right employment opportunity.
Announcement: OPT deadline extended to 180 days
PS: Leap Finance has launched a petition regarding the same supporting international students. Please sign now and share with friends to make our voice heard!
Our reading picks for the week
How Elon Musk (an international student!) is pushing the boundaries of Tech and Space with SpaceX as the first private company to launch astronauts to International Space Station.
Purdue President’s Op-ed on Why and How Purdue will be opening it’s campus come Fall 2020.
US’s top epidemiologist Dr. Anthony Fauci has expressed cautious optimism for COVID-19 vaccine to be ready by end of 2020.
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