The STEM OPT extension gives F-1 graduates in science, technology, engineering, or math fields up to 24 additional months of work authorization on top of the standard 12-month post-completion OPT, for a possible total of 36 months of U.S. work experience. To get it and keep it, you need a qualifying degree, an E-Verify employer, a detailed training plan on Form I-983, and a Form I-765 filed with USCIS before your current EAD expires. The rules are stricter than standard OPT, and small paperwork or timing mistakes can end your status.
Who Qualifies
You have to meet every one of these conditions when you file:
- You are currently on post-completion OPT with a valid EAD.
- Your degree is from a U.S. school accredited by a recognized accrediting agency and certified by the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), and the degree appears on the DHS STEM Designated Degree Program List (identified by CIP code).
- The STEM degree supporting your application was earned within the past 10 years.
- Your job is directly related to the STEM field listed on your Form I-20.
- Your employer is enrolled in E-Verify.
- You work at least 20 hours per week. There is no exception below that.
The degree you use doesn’t have to be your most recent one. If you finished a bachelor’s in computer science and then earned an MBA, you can still apply based on the earlier STEM degree, as long as it’s within the 10-year window and on the designated list. Your current job has to connect to that STEM field, though, not to the MBA.
When to File
The clock starts when your Designated School Officer (DSO) enters the STEM OPT recommendation into SEVIS. From that point you have 60 days to file Form I-765 with USCIS, and the filing has to reach USCIS before your current OPT expires.
If your EAD expires while the application is still pending, your work authorization is automatically extended for up to 180 days, but only if you filed on time and the application was properly submitted before the expiration date. File the standard I-765 fee based on the current USCIS schedule (it was adjusted for 2026, so check the fee calculator before you send anything). Premium processing is available by filing Form I-907; as of March 2026 that fee is $1,780 on top of the standard filing fee.
The Form I-983 Training Plan
Before you can file, you and your employer have to complete Form I-983 and submit it to your DSO. USCIS uses this form to confirm that your position is genuine training, not ordinary employment dressed up for a foreign worker.
The plan needs a detailed description of your role and how your day-to-day work ties back to your STEM degree. Your employer has to spell out the specific skills you’ll build, how you’ll be supervised, and how often your performance will be evaluated. The goals should show progression over the 24 months, not a one-line job description. Vague or generic plans get sent back for revision.
When You Have to Update It
The I-983 isn’t a set-and-forget document. A material change means a new submission to your DSO. Material changes include a pay cut not tied to reduced hours, a significant drop in weekly hours, a change in the employer’s EIN, or any shift in the learning objectives or supervisory arrangement. An acquisition, a team restructure, or a substantial change in your role likely triggers a new filing too.
What Your Employer Has to Do
The program puts real obligations on the employer, and companies that skip them can lose the ability to hire international graduates.
E-Verify and Comparable Wages
Your employer must be enrolled in E-Verify before you start working under the extension, not after. The employer also has to certify that it will pay you a wage comparable to what similarly situated U.S. workers earn for the same role in the same location. That language exists specifically to keep the program from undercutting domestic wages.
Supervision and 48-Hour Notice
Employers have to provide structured training with measurable goals and assign a supervisor to oversee your development. If your employment ends before the STEM OPT period is up, whether by termination, layoff, or resignation, the employer has to notify your DSO within 48 hours. Missing that window is a compliance failure that can pull scrutiny onto the employer.
DHS Site Visits
DHS can visit your workplace to check that the arrangement matches what’s in the Form I-983. Normally you get at least 48 hours’ notice, but if the visit is triggered by a complaint or evidence of noncompliance, DHS can arrive unannounced. ICE employees may confirm that the employer has the resources and staff to run the training and may ask for documentation showing how comparable wages were determined. Sometimes the inquiry comes by phone or email instead. If DHS finds problems, it sends a written request identifying what needs to be corrected; serious cases can be referred to the Department of Labor or other agencies.
Third-Party Worksites
You can work at a client site, but only if your actual employer (the one that signed the I-983) keeps a real employer-employee relationship with you and handles training and mentoring directly. The employer can’t delegate those duties to the third party. Any off-site work location has to be disclosed on the I-983, and DHS evaluates these case by case. Staffing-agency setups, where the agency is the employer of record but the client controls the day-to-day work, tend to draw extra scrutiny.
Keeping Your Status After Approval
Approval isn’t the finish line. You are responsible for keeping your SEVIS record accurate throughout the 24 months.
Six-Month Check-Ins
Every six months you have to work with your DSO to confirm that your name, address, employer name, employer address, and employment status are all current in SEVIS. This is a regulatory requirement, not a suggestion, and falling behind can jeopardize your status.
Self-Evaluations
You also have to complete written self-evaluations against the goals in your I-983. The first is due within 12 months of the start of your STEM OPT period, and the second is due at the end of the 24 months. Both go to your DSO, who updates SEVIS.
The 150-Day Unemployment Cap
You are allowed a maximum of 150 days of unemployment across your entire OPT period: 90 days during the initial 12-month OPT and 60 more during the STEM extension. These days are cumulative, not per-job. If you used 80 of your first 90 days before the extension started, you have 70 days left for the rest of the period. Going over is a status violation.
Switching Jobs
A job change during the STEM extension has to move fast. Report the change to your DSO within 10 days, and submit a final self-evaluation from the previous employer within that same window. The new employer must already be enrolled in E-Verify before you start. Within 10 days of starting the new position, you and the new employer have to complete and submit a fresh Form I-983 to your DSO. If there’s a gap between jobs, report the loss of employment to your DSO first, then submit the new training plan when you begin the next job.
Traveling While on STEM OPT
You can travel, but the reentry documents have to be right. To come back you generally need a valid passport, a valid F-1 visa stamp (unless you qualify for automatic revalidation after fewer than 30 days in Canada, Mexico, or certain adjacent islands), your EAD, and an I-20 with a travel signature from your DSO that is less than six months old. If the signature is older, get a new one before you leave.
The bigger risk is an expired visa stamp. You’d have to renew it at a U.S. consulate abroad, and there is no guarantee the consulate will issue it quickly or at all. If your STEM OPT application is still pending and you leave the country, you may not be able to reenter. Talk to your DSO before booking any international travel.
Bridging to an H-1B: The Cap-Gap Extension
If your employer sponsors you for an H-1B while you are on OPT or STEM OPT, the cap-gap provision can automatically extend your F-1 status and work authorization through September 30 of the year the H-1B takes effect, bridging the gap to the October 1 H-1B start date.
To qualify, the H-1B petition has to be subject to the annual cap. Cap-exempt petitions (from universities or research institutions, for example) do not trigger cap-gap. Your employer must file while your OPT or STEM OPT is still valid, and the petition must request a change of status to H-1B starting October 1. If the petition is denied, withdrawn, or revoked, the cap-gap extension ends and your work authorization stops.
One rule catches people out: if you leave the United States while your H-1B change-of-status petition is pending, you lose cap-gap eligibility. Your DSO can update your I-20 to reflect cap-gap, but the extension itself is automatic once USCIS receives the qualifying petition, so you don’t have to wait for the new I-20 to keep working.
A Second STEM OPT Extension
If you go back to school after using your first STEM extension and earn a new, higher-level STEM degree, you can apply for a second 24-month STEM extension based on the new degree. A student who used a STEM extension after a bachelor’s, then finished a STEM master’s, could get another 12-month post-completion OPT plus another 24-month STEM extension. Each round needs its own Form I-765 and its own Form I-983.
FICA Taxes During the Extension
F-1 students who have been in the United States for fewer than five calendar years are generally classified as nonresident aliens for tax purposes and are exempt from Social Security and Medicare (FICA) taxes on authorized wages. Once you pass five calendar years and meet the Substantial Presence Test, you’re typically treated as a resident alien and become subject to FICA like any other U.S. worker. Many students hit this transition during the STEM extension, because studying plus working often pushes them past the threshold. If your employer is withholding FICA and you believe you still qualify for the exemption, raise it with payroll and, if needed, talk to a tax professional.