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Special Student Relief for F-1 Nonimmigrant Students

February 22, 2023 (1 min read)

USCIS, Feb. 22, 2023

"The Secretary of Homeland Security may suspend certain regulatory requirements for F-1 students from a particular region who are experiencing severe economic hardship as a direct result of emergent circumstances (also known as SSR). DHS designates SSR by publication of a Federal Register notice, which provides the start and end dates of the suspension of those requirements, which may include any or all requirements for on-campus or off-campus employment. USCIS previously issued off-campus SSR employment authorization for up to 1 year, consistent with the regulatory limitations to employment authorization due to severe economic hardship. However, the Secretary may suspend that temporal limitation due to emergent circumstances by notice in the Federal Register. Therefore, USCIS is clarifying that it may grant off-campus SSR employment authorization for the duration of the Federal Register notice validity period, not to exceed the F-1 nonimmigrant student’s academic program end date. This guidance, contained in Volume 2 and Volume 10 of the Policy Manual, is effective immediately."