US OPT to H-1B or Home: SEVIS Exit Steps and Final Tax Filing for ASEAN Graduates Leaving the United States

What happens to your status when OPT ends

Your Optional Practical Training authorization ends on the date printed on your OPT-endorsed Form I-20, 12 months from your start date, or later if you used the 24-month STEM extension. From that end date, F-1 regulations give you a grace period of 60 days if your OPT ends before September 15, 2026, or 30 days if it ends on or after that date. This change comes from a DHS final rule published in the Federal Register on 17 July 2026, which eliminates "duration of status" for F, J and I nonimmigrants in favor of fixed admission periods and takes effect 15 September 2026. The shorter grace period applies to any F-1 student whose program or OPT authorization ends on or after that date, including students already in the US, not only new entrants. During this window you prepare to leave the US, apply to transfer your SEVIS record to a new degree program, or change status if you have another basis to stay, such as an approved H-1B start date. You do not work during the grace period unless a specific extension applies to you. Because the rule is new, confirm your exact grace period length with your DSO before you make travel or transfer plans.

The cap-gap extension if you are moving to H-1B

If your employer files an H-1B petition on your behalf before your OPT or grace period ends, and the petition is selected in that year's H-1B cap and filed as a change of status rather than consular processing, cap-gap rules extend your F-1 status and work authorization automatically until 30 September, bridging the gap between your OPT end date and the H-1B start date of 1 October. This cap-gap protection is explicitly unaffected by the new DHS grace period rule. Your DSO updates your SEVIS record to reflect the cap-gap extension, so tell your international student office as soon as your employer confirms the H-1B filing.

If your H-1B is not selected in the cap, or you decide not to pursue it, your original grace period still applies from your OPT end date (60 days if your OPT ended before September 15, 2026, or 30 days if it ended on or after that date), it does not restart.

Closing out your SEVIS record correctly

Before you leave the US for good, ask your Designated School Official (DSO) to confirm your SEVIS record is marked completed rather than left active or terminated. An accurate completed status protects you if you apply for a US visa again later, an open or incorrectly closed record triggers extra questions or delays at a future visa interview or port of entry. If you are transferring to a new school or changing status instead, your DSO handles the corresponding SEVIS update, confirm which situation applies to you before you leave campus.

Filing your final US tax return

Most ASEAN students on F-1 status are nonresident aliens for tax purposes and file Form 1040-NR if they had US-sourced income such as wages, a paid internship, or a taxable scholarship. The filing deadline is the 15th day of the 4th month after your tax year ends, typically 15 April, if you had wages or were self-employed, or the 15th day of the 6th month, typically 15 June, if you had no wages, according to the IRS .

Separately, most F and J visa holders and their dependents file Form 8843 every year they are present in the US, even in years with no income, to document their exempt status for the substantial presence test. File it by the same deadline as your 1040-NR if you also owe one, or by 15 June if you had no income to report.

Departing aliens are also required in some circumstances to obtain a certificate of compliance, sometimes called a sailing or departure permit, using Form 1040-C or Form 2063, before leaving the country. In practice this is rarely enforced for students leaving directly after OPT with simple wage income, but check with a tax professional familiar with nonresident filings if your situation includes other income sources or a longer US work history.

Check for a FICA tax refund

F-1 students working on OPT are generally exempt from Social Security and Medicare (FICA) taxes as nonresident aliens. If your employer withheld FICA tax from your pay by mistake, ask the employer to refund it first. If the employer will not, you claim a refund directly from the IRS using Form 843 along with supporting documents such as your W-2 and I-20. Keep your pay stubs so you can check whether FICA was withheld before you file.

Check whether the state you worked in also requires a state income tax return, separate from your federal 1040-NR. State filing rules, forms and deadlines differ from the federal ones, so confirm the requirement with that state's department of revenue if you are unsure.

If you change status to H-1B and stay in the US, remember that noncitizens must report a change of home address to USCIS within 10 days using Form AR-11, and again through your employer's records if you move between the OPT and H-1B stages.

Before you leave, checklist

• Confirm your grace period start date with your DSO and count 60 days from your OPT end date if it fell before September 15, 2026, or 30 days if it falls on or after that date, not your last day of work.

• If pursuing H-1B, confirm your employer filed before your OPT ended and ask your DSO to log the cap-gap extension in SEVIS, this September 30 protection is unchanged by the new grace period rule.

• File Form 1040-NR and Form 8843 by their respective deadlines, even after you have left the country.

• Get written confirmation your SEVIS record shows "completed."

• Keep copies of your I-20, EAD card, pay stubs and tax filings, you need these for future US visa applications.