On November 30, 2020, a federal district judge in the matter of
Washington Alliance of Technology Workers v. U.S. Department of
Homeland Security, et al., No. 16-1170, issued an order to
uphold the Obama-era program permitting extensions of optional
practical training (OPT) work authorizations for certain
international students with qualifying science, technology,
engineering, and math (STEM) degrees.
By regulation, foreign students in F-1 visa status who graduate
from U.S. universities or colleges can obtain twelve months of OPT
work authorization following the completion of their degree
programs. In 2016, the Obama administration
extended the program so that F-1 students could obtain an
additional two-year extension of the OPT work authorization if
certain requirements were met, including holding degrees in
qualifying STEM fields of study and working for employers
registered with the federal E-Verify employment eligibility system.
The STEM OPT program also
