During an interview for a F-1 visa why do you have to prove you are not staying in the U.S when there is OPT?

Question

Hi. Im a British Citizen born in London currently taking an undergraduate course at University College London in Project Management for Construction and am looking into taking a masters at Texas A&M in Construction Management. Ive read about the possibility of optional practical training for 1 year after completion, then if you find a company to sponsor you, you may be able to obtain an H-1B visa, which in future holds a potential path to a green card, through dual intent on the H-1B.

Now this is a route that if it presented itself I would consider accepting, but then when I read about the F-1 I would need to enroll as a student I found conflicting information. Here it states that you must prove to an interviewer you will return home after your degree.

If all students have to agree to return home after their studies then why is there this option after the degree?

Surely the interviewers know that some people they meet will/plan to go onto OPT.

Any Ideas?

Answer 1

While in theory you are correct, the wording of your question is even more crucial.

You state that all students must *agree* to return home, this is not true, but you must *prove* that you will or that you have at least the *intention* of doing so. Now weather you do or do not, return home is irrelevant, it is all about the intent.

The reason for OPT is quite simple; it is to give those students who may not be fortunate enough to find the kind of work experience in their home country and thus to equip them with better knowledge and the tools to make a better life for themselves and to improve the standards within their own country. Because just remember, that while the route you described is a possibility, it is still just that, a possibility; there are no guarantees that a student can find an employer, there are no guarantees that if one does, then that company will sponsor them for an H1B or further down the line, a green card. In fact there are no guarantees that the DSO at the school will approve a student for OPT and none what-so-ever of the USCIS approving an I-765 (EAD) for them.

So the fact that this route, that this *possibility* exists, does not mean that it will happen for everyone. So that is why one must prove their intention is to return home upon the completion of their studies.