Students on OPT or STEM OPT

OPT Reporting
Students are required to report employment information as well as physical living address during approved OPT periods. Changes must be reported within 10 days of the change occurring.

To make updates, students should complete the OPT Update and Reporting Form or STEM OPT Update and Reporting Form as well as the SEVP Portal. Additional information for using the SEVP Portal is available here.

*Please note you will not have access to your USCIS portal until your OPT start date.

The following activities are considered allowable employment on OPT:

• Regular Paid Employment
• Payment by multiple short-term employers
• Primarily focused on musicians and other performing artists.
• Students should maintain a list of all gig dates and duration of each.
• Work for Hire
  • Also called 1099 employment or independent contractor
  • Students should retain evidence showing duration of contract periods, name and address of contracting company.
• Self-Employed Business Owner
  • Students must be able to prove they have proper business licenses and are actively engaged in a business related to their degree program.
• Employment Through an Agency
  • Students must retain evidence showing they worked an average of at least 20 hours per week while employed by the agency.
• Volunteers or Unpaid Interns
  • Students must ensure their volunteer or unpaid internship does not violate any labor laws and constitutes at least 20 hours per week.
  • Students must maintain evidence from the employer that verifies that they worked at least 20 hours per week during the period of employment.

Students on OPT may travel outside the U.S. if they have the following documents:

• Valid passport and F-1 visa.
• Unexpired EAD.
• Form I-20 with the OPT recommendation and a travel signature that is not older than 6 months.
• Proof of employment.
  • A letter from employer verifying that student is currently employed. Failure to show evidence of employment may result in denial of reentry.

If the F-1 visa is expired, it is not recommend to travel internationally without first discussing your plans with an advisor. There are limited situations in which a student on OPT with an expired visa may reenter the U.S. without renewing an expired visa. There is a possibility of visa denial when applying for an F-1 visa renewal while on OPT.

Students cannot exceed 90 days of unemployment during their 12-month OPT period. Accruing more than 90 days will result in the loss of F-1 status and the termination of the OPT authorization. Time spent outside of the U.S. without an employer still counts towards the 90 days of unemployment.

The following options are available to students about to reach 90 days of unemployment:

• Enroll in a new degree program
• Apply for a new immigration status
• Depart the U.S.

Tax Obligations

The information below is only intended as a general overview of taxpaying requirements and should not be considered financial or legal advice. Due to legal restrictions, the staff of the Office of International Student & Scholar Services is not able to advise on tax issues, answer individual tax questions, or prepare tax forms for students or scholars.

Non-immigrants in F or J status (both principal and dependents) are required to file an individual income tax return if they were physically present in the U.S. in the tax year (January 1 – December 31), even if they had no U.S. source income. Be aware that there are penalties for failure to file a tax return.

Tax Workshops

Tax workshops on nonresident taxes are offered each spring in webinars on Nonresident Taxes through Sprintax.

Sprintax Nonresident Tax Webinar (EAP)

In these tax webinars, international students, scholars and professionals will be run through everything they need to know about nonresident tax for the 2024 tax season. Topics will include who must file, tax residency, FICA, State returns, implications of misfiling as well as how to use Sprintax to prepare a compliant tax return.

Spring 2024 Tax Season Webinars to be held in early 2025 will be posted here when available.

**Rollins OISSS will host a Tax Workshop on this day. Students can join us (TBD) to watch the Sprintax webinar together and then have a Q&A session following.

Sprintax Nonresident Tax Overview for OPT/CPT

Topics covered in these webinars will include residency for tax purposes, tax liabilities when on OPT/CPT and pre-employment tax forms when on OPT/CPT. The Sprintax team will also provide an overview of Sprintax Forms which can be used to prepare your pre OPT/CPT employment tax documents.

Dates will be posted when available.

The tax filing deadline is annually set as April 15. This date may be adjusted per the calendar or due to the pandemic. In 2025, for tax year 2024, the tax filing day will be April 15. 

Guides and Form

Tax Guide and Information Packet

Tax Year 2023 Income Tax Filing Guide
Sprintax YouTube Channel

Tax Filing Forms for Tax Year 2023

Form 843
Instructions for Form 843
Instructions & Form 8843
Form 1040-NR
Instructions for Form 1040-NR

Summary of Tax Obligations

International students and scholars studying, teaching or engaged in research activities in the U.S. are subject to federal and state income taxation. Some nonimmigrants are also subject to the federal Social Security tax (FICA) on wages earned.

The U.S. tax treatment of international students and scholars and families depends on their status as residents or nonresidents (for tax purposes) and type of income. In some circumstances, country of origin may be a factor, since the United States has tax treaties with some countries which exempt citizens and/or residents of those countries from U.S. income tax. Since tax liability depends on personal circumstances, students are responsible for determining their own tax obligations.

F and J visa holders (students, scholars, professors, trainees, etc.) are generally considered nonresident aliens for U.S. federal tax purposes for an initial period ranging from 2-5 years. These individuals must file a 1040-NR federal tax return if they have U.S. income subject to tax. Nonresident alien students and trainees who are temporarily in the U.S. with F, J, M, or Q status and who have no income subject to U.S. tax, do not have to file Form 1040-NR. However, they must still file Form 8843.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the U.S. government agency responsible for the collection of federal income taxes.

Federal Tax Withholding

All employers are required to withhold or deduct applicable federal, state and city taxes from paychecks. These withholdings are recorded by your Social Security number. The payroll office determines the amount of tax to be withheld from each paycheck. At the end of the tax year, anyone who is/was employed will receive a W-2 Form from their employer. This form totals the income paid and taxes withheld for the year. From this, you can determine if you owe additional tax or the U.S. government owes you a refund by checking the tax table in the Form 1040-NR instruction book. You must submit the appropriate copy of the W-2 with your income tax return.

Nonresident aliens in F-1 or J-1 status are exempt from Social Security (FICA) withholdings if income is received for services performed to carry out the purpose for which the alien was admitted to the U.S. This includes employment pursuant to a scholarship, fellowship, assistantship or other financial aid award, approved on- and off-campus employment, authorized employment due to economic necessity and practical training employment [26 U.S.C. 3121 (b) (19)]. However, students who have been in F status for over 5 years and are not from countries covered by tax treaties (2 years for J visa holders) are subject to Social Security tax withholding unless they can prove to the IRS that they do not intend to stay in the U.S.

For more information, please read the Internal Revenue Service's Publication 513.

Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN)

If you are not eligible for a Social Security Number and receive a taxable scholarship, you need to apply for an ITIN so that you can file your income tax return during tax season. If you wish to benefit from a tax treaty, you may need an ITIN. For more information on how to file for an ITIN, please this handout.

Beginning the day after the OPT authorization period ends, students have a 60-day grace period. During this grace period, students can:

• Depart the U.S.
• Enroll in a new program of study at Rollins or another school
  • The new program must begin within 5 months from the OPT end date or the next available session, whichever comes sooner.
  • If the school is within the U.S., the student must submit the SEVIS Transfer Out Request Form in order to transfer their immigration record.
  • Student must be issued new I-20 for new program within the grace period.
• Change to another non-immigrant status

If the student’s employer has applied to sponsor the student for an H-1B, the student can learn more about the F-1 Cap-Gap below.

The H-1B non-immigrant visa is a temporary work visa for employment in a “specialty occupation.” A “specialty occupation” is generally considered a professional-level position that requires a minimum of a bachelor’s degree or equivalent in a specific field of study.

Parameters of the H-1B:

• Minimum salary is required; Labor Condition Application must be certified prior to application.
• Initial 3-year stay; extension up to additional 3 years; limited opportunity for further extension.
• Limited number of H-1B visas available annually.
  • H-1B fiscal year is October 1 – September 30
  • 65,000 cap (6800 reserved for citizens of Chile & Singapore)
  • 20,000 additional visas available for beneficiaries holding a master’s degree or higher from a U.S. institution.
• Employer is responsible for cost of return transportation for dismissed employee.

H-1B Petition Process:

• Employers must register in the USCIS registration system during the registration period and register each intended beneficiary (employee).
• Registration periods are announced annually by USCIS.
• If the petitioner (employer) is selected in the registration system, a complete H-1B cap-subject petition may be filed on behalf of the beneficiary (employee) within the filing period indicated on the notice.