U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on
April 12, 2021, that F-1 students seeking optional practical
training (OPT) can now file Form I-765, Application for Employment
Authorization, online if they are filing under one of these
categories:
(c)(3)(A), Pre-Completion OPT
(c)(3)(B), Post-Completion OPT
(c)(3)(C), 24-Month Extension of OPT for science, technology,
engineering, and mathematics (STEM) students
USCIS emphasized that the option to file Form I-765 online is
only available to F-1 students filing Form I-765 for OPT, noting
that "[i]f an applicant submits Form I-765 online to request
employment authorization on or after April 15, but is eligible for
a different employment authorization category, USCIS will deny the
application and retain the fee. As USCIS continues to transition to
paperless operations, the agency will work to expand online filing
for Form I-765 to additional categories."
