Emergency Work Authorization Due to Unforeseen Economic Hardship

Eligibility

To qualify, you need to:

• Have been in F-1 status for at least 1 academic year and in good academic standing with the university.
• Prove to USCIS that off-campus employment is necessary due to the severe economic hardship caused by circumstances beyond your control.  Conditions creating economic hardship may include:
  • Loss of financial-aid or on-campus employment through no fault of your own
  • Unexpected changes in the financial condition of your source of support
  • Substantial fluctuations in the value of your home currency or exchange rate
  • Inordinate increases in tuition and/or living costs
  • Unforeseen medical bills or other substantial and unexpected expenses
• You must be able to demonstrate that these circumstances arose after you were granted F-1 status

Procedure

1. Meet with an OISS staff member to discuss your situation.
2. An OISS staff member will review your situation and determine if you are a good candidate to apply for economic hardship employment authorization.  They will reach out to you within 5 business days to schedule another appointment.  You should bring the following

• Filled out I-765 form. In box #16, write (c) (3) (ii). Instructions.
• Documentation justifying the need for work permission based upon economic necessity (for example, a letter from home telling of a change in family circumstances or proof of a currency devaluation in the student's country)
• Evidence that accepting employment will not interfere with your enrollment in a full course of study
• Evidence that on-campus employment is not available or is not sufficient to meet the needs that have arisen due to the unforeseen circumstances
• Completed attachment page to form I-765 Copy of your I-94 (print at https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/)
• Completed form G-1145: Notification of Application/Petition Acceptance
• Copy of your passport information page
• Copy of your transcripts
• Personal check, cashier’s check or money order for $410.00, made payable to the Department of Homeland Security
• Two U.S. passport size photographs with a white background, taken in the last 30 days, with your name and SEVIS # written in pencil on the back of the pictures. Refer to this government website for the correct dimensions. No glasses are allowed and pictures must not have been used for a previous passport or visa application.
• Completed form G-1145 for e-notification of application/petition acceptance. This is only available if the filing address for your application is a USCIS lockbox.
• Bank statements for the last six months from your sponsor and yourself
• Copy of your transcripts
• OISS staff will provide regulatory and practice information as it stands at the time of the consultation. Due to the fluid nature of governmental interpretation, applicants must understand that USCIS reserves the right to change their interpretation of immigration regulations or requirements to establish eligibility for benefits at any time.
• USCIS is actively checking external sources such as your social media accounts and using it to determine whether you have maintained your F-1 status.
• USCIS currently holds the discretion to deny applications without issuing a Request for Evidence (RFE).
• Verify your eligibility to apply for economic necessity employment
• Provide you with a new I-20 form and a completed packet which will be ready for mailing
• Provide you with a letter stating that you have been in valid F-1 status for one full academic year, are in good standing, and are enrolled in a full course of study

Optional items to submit with this application:

• Completed form G-1145 for e-notification of application/petition acceptance. This is only available if the filing address for your application is a USCIS lockbox
• Bank statements for the last six months from your sponsor and yourself
• Copy of your transcripts

Important Disclaimers:

• OISS staff will provide regulatory and practice information as it stands at the time of the consultation. Due to the fluid nature of governmental interpretation, applicants must understand that USCIS reserves the right to change their interpretation of immigration regulations or requirements to establish eligibility for benefits at any time.
• USCIS is actively checking external sources such as your social media accounts and using it to determine whether you have maintained your F-1 status.
• USCIS currently holds the discretion to deny applications without issuing a Request for Evidence (RFE).

After the OISS receives your complete application, we will:

• Verify your eligibility to apply for economic necessity employment
• Provide you with a new I-20 form and a completed packet which will be ready for mailing
• Provide you with a letter stating that you have been in valid F-1 status for one full academic year are in good standing, and are enrolled in a full course of study

Printable Instructions and I-765 attachment

Eligibility

To qualify for emergency employment authorization, immigration regulations require that you meet the following conditions: 

• You must be a full-time student in valid J-1 status.
• The most important point to keep in mind is that for you to qualify an adverse change in your financial situation must have been unforeseen, or to be more accurate, it must have been unforeseeable, when you first came to the US to study. This is because J regulations provide that hardship employment authorization must be "necessary because of serious, urgent, and unforeseen economic circumstances which have arisen since acquiring exchange visitor status."
• Elsewhere, immigration regulations note that unforeseen circumstances "may include loss of financial aid or on-campus employment without fault on the part of the student, substantial fluctuations in the value of currency or exchange rate, inordinate increases in tuition and/or living costs, unexpected changes in the financial conditions of the student's source of support, medical bills, or other substantial and unexpected expenses."

Application procedure

• Meet with an OISS staff member to discuss your situation.
• An OISS staff member will review your situation and determine if you are a good candidate to apply for economic hardship employment authorization.  They will reach out to you within 5 business days to schedule another appointment. You should bring your financial documentation to your appointment.
• If your application is approved, OISS will write a letter that will serve as proof of your employment authorization.