F-1 OPT Reporting

You will receive instructions about creating an SEVP Portal account in an email from do-not-reply.SEVP@ice.dhs.gov. SEVP will send this email to you on or soon after the first day of your approved OPT period (as listed on your EAD).

If you do not receive any email from SEVP on the first day of your OPT period, please check your spam, junk, and clutter folders over the following few days. If you can’t find the email, please email us at opt@rochester.edu.

You must follow the instructions in the email to create your account immediately, even if you do not have any changes to report. The account creation instructions will expire after a certain amount of time.

Once you have created an SEVP Portal account, you can access the portal any time during your OPT. It is recommended that you regularly log in to the portal to check that your reported details remain current and accurate at all times. Please email opt@rochester.edu to let us know when you make updates in your portal account.

If you need to change the email address you use to access your SEVP Portal account, please email opt@rochester.edu to ask ISO to update it.

If you are locked out of your SEVP Portal account, please email ISO at opt@rochester.edu to request that we trigger a reset link. Beyond this, ISO cannot provide technical support for the SEVP Portal. Study in the States includes troubleshooting tips and SEVP contact information if needed.

There may be changes that you can’t make yourself in the SEVP Portal. In those instances, please use the relevant ISO reporting form so we can do the reporting for you:

• F-1 OPT reporting form
• F-1 OPT reporting form for Eastman students
• Address Reporting form

If you leave the United States at any time during your OPT, and you decide you will not return to use your F-1 OPT authorization, please email us at opt@rochester.edu. In the email, confirm you have departed the United States, you will not return to the United States to use this OPT authorization, and that you would like us to deactivate your SEVIS record (this will stop the accrual of unemployment days). Please note: it will not be possible to reactivate this SEVIS record following deactivation. You will need a new SEVIS record created if you will return to the United States for activities that requires F-1 status.

Note: You may not want to request this deactivation if you will begin another program of study in the United States within 5 months of ending your employment activity. If this is your plan, please contact ISO for further guidance about your eligibility for a SEVIS Immigration Transfer (for study at another school) or a Change of Education Level (to begin another degree at UR) once you are admitted to the new program.

If you change status to a different visa category during your OPT, please use ISO’s OPT/STEM Reporting Document Upload form to provide evidence of your new status so we can make sure your F-1 SEVIS record is appropriately completed.

If you will be changing status to the H-1B, please review Cap-Gap Extensions in case this information applies to your transition from F-1 OPT to H-1B.