Law Office of Leila Freijy PLLC
Immigration & Compliance Law 
Consent Order in class action suit challenging OPT delays
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On 7/23/21, the District Court for the Southern District of Ohio Eastern Division issued a consent order in Li v. USCIS, a class action lawsuit challenging the delayed adjudication of applications for Optional Practical Training (OPT). The Consent Order outlines the terms of agreement, which are applicable to all individuals applying for F-1 OPT. The terms include:
 
  1. Applications for OPT and STEM extensions filed between October 1, 2020, through October 31, 2021, will be processed by the USCIS within 120 days. Processing means that the application will be approved, denied or an RFE issued within 120 days.
  2. The interim relief announced on February 26, 2021, continues for all cases filed between October 1, 2020, and October 31, 2021. This includes:
  • A full 12 months of OPT irrespective of the requirement OPT be completed within 14 months of graduation.
  • OPT will be granted for the full period recommended by the DSO, irrespective of the time of adjudication.
  • If an EAD has been issued for less than these time periods, USCIS will issue a corrected EAD upon request.
  • Rejected applications which were originally submitted on time can be resubmitted and will be processed as if received on the original date (the full period of OPT will be granted, but the original I-20 will be accepted without the requirement of a new I-20.
  • Requests for Evidence will be issued instead of a denial for missing or deficient signatures.
  • OPT applications can be submitted up to 120 days (instead of 90) before completion of the academic program through October 31, 2021.
This client alert is being provided only to company representatives. Please share with your foreign national staff as you see fit or direct them to our web site where this client alert will be posted.

If you have any questions or concerns about the information provided in this email, please don't hesitate to contact me.
 
Sincerely,

Leila Freijy
Law Office of Leila Freijy PLLC
Law Office of Leila Freijy PLLC| FreijyLaw.com
Immigration & Compliance Law
Leila Freijy, Esq.
3150 Livernois Rd #103
Troy, MI 48083
248.817,8280
248.287.4115 (fax)