OPT Reporting

Post-Completion OPT Reporting Requirements for F-1 Students

To maintain F-1 status during OPT you must comply with U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) employment and reporting requirements. DHS requires students to report all changes of address and periods of employment and unemployment while authorized for OPT. To meet your reporting obligations, you must report the information to the ISSO. Please note, while you may also make the updates using the SEVP Portal, you are still required to submit a signed reporting form to SEU ISS. For more information about the SEVP Portal, visit https://studyinthestates.dhs.gov/sevp-portal-help.

Updates must be reported within 10 days of the start of your OPT work authorization and no later than 10 days after any subsequent change. Please contact the ISS if you have any questions.

What to Report

Once approved for OPT, please provide a copy of your USCIS approval notice and Employment Authorization Document (EAD) to iss@stedwards.edu. You must also report any of the following changes within 10 days:

• Change in your current U.S. address

• Legal name change

• Start or end of employment

• Change of your employer’s address

• Change of your employer’s name

• Job Description

How to Report

Although you may report some changes to SEVIS via the SEVP Portal, doing so does not eliminate the requirement to report to ISS. To meet your reporting obligations, you must submit the OPT Reporting Form found in myHilltop.

You must also write a brief a description of how the job relates to your degree program. Two to four sentences are sufficient. This description will be pasted into your SEVIS record when ISS processes your OPT Reporting request, so ensure that it is clear, thorough, and professional. Save a copy of this description for your own records.