OPT application window calculator.

The filing rule

8 CFR 214.2(f)(11)(i)(B)(2) says that for post-completion OPT, not counting the 24-month STEM extension, a student may properly file Form I-765 "up to 90 days prior to his or her program end date and no later than 30 days after his or her program end date". The student "must also file" the form within 30 days of the date the designated school official (DSO) enters the recommendation for OPT into the SEVIS record. Whichever of the two limits comes first is your deadline.

Start dates are handled separately by paragraph (f)(11)(i)(D): a student may not begin OPT before the approved start date on the EAD, and may not request a start date more than 30 days after the program end date. Employment authorization begins on the date requested or the date it is adjudicated, whichever is later.

Worked example

A program ends May 15, 2027. The window opens February 14, 2027 and the outer limit is June 14, 2027, so the window is 121 days long. If the DSO enters the recommendation on April 1, the 30-day rule moves the deadline to May 1, 2027, and that date, not June 14, is the one to meet. If the DSO instead enters it on June 1, the program-end limit of June 14 binds, since 30 days after June 1 is July 1. A recommendation entered after June 14 is already outside the window.

After the September 2026 rule

Under the fixed-admission rule that took effect on September 15, 2026, 8 CFR 214.2(f)(10)(ii)(D) says that, unless the student is described in 8 CFR 214.1(m)(1)(i), a student recommended for post-completion OPT must apply for employment authorization and either apply for an extension of stay with USCIS or seek admission through CBP after travel abroad. 8 CFR 214.1(m)(1)(i) relieves a student admitted for duration of status and in status on September 15, 2026 from filing Form I-539 if the Form I-765 is filed before the period of admission expires and on or before March 18, 2027. DHS can extend that date in 6-month steps by notice in the Federal Register. A student outside that group should ask the DSO whether a Form I-539 must go with the Form I-765.

Points that trip people up

• Counting from graduation. The window is measured from the program end date on the Form I-20, which can differ from commencement or the last exam.
• Filing versus mailing. Rules refer to properly filing, so allow time for delivery and use the receipt date as your check.
• The SEVIS date. The 30-day limit starts when the DSO enters the recommendation, not when you asked for it. Request the recommendation early.
• Pre-completion OPT has its own rule: up to 90 days before the student has been enrolled for one full academic year. This tool does not model it.
• Unemployment limits start once OPT begins; the OPT unemployment days calculator counts them.

What this does not cover

The fee, supporting documents, biometrics, the STEM extension (its own window page), cap-gap, or whether you are eligible for OPT at all. A proposed rule on OPT fees was published on October 8, 2026 and is not modeled here.

Sources

• eCFR: 8 CFR 214.2(f)(10)(ii)(D) and (f)(11)(i) — filing deadlines and start date. Read November 1, 2026.
• eCFR: 8 CFR 214.1(m)(1)(i) — the March 18, 2027 date for transition-group students.
• Federal Register: 91 FR 44976 (July 17, 2026) — the fixed-admission final rule.

Retrieved November 1, 2026.