S5 Blog: Finishing Your Program: OPT Eligibility, Grace Periods and Your Next Degree

 Quick answer. Decide your next step before your program end date. If you're eligible for OPT, apply between 90 days before and 60 days after that date. You then have a 60-day grace period to transfer, change status or leave.

Your countdown
1. Six months out: tell your consultant your end date and options.
2. Four months out: apply for any next program.
3. 90 days out: your OPT window opens, if you're eligible.
4. End date: CPT ends, and your grace period starts.

OPT eligibility: 12 months or more of full-time CPT removes post-completion OPT at that degree level; part-time CPT doesn't count. Ask our senior consultant to check your history.

Next degree: it should be a genuine next step, not the same level and field again. Schools and USCIS look more closely at this since August 2026. Our partners mostly offer master's and doctoral programs.

More time to finish? Ask your DSO for an extension before your end date. It's only for academic or medical reasons, not to keep working on CPT.

Going home? That's a good plan too. Leave within your grace period.

Next step: within six months of your end date? Reply, and we'll book a planning call.