OPT fraud: 10,000 foreign students under ICE scanner

The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has identified around 10,000 foreign students, including many Indians, for allegedly misusing the Optional Practical Training (OPT) programme. Officials say these students were linked to suspicious employers and possible visa fraud.

The OPT programme allows international students on student visas to work in the United States for 12 to 24 months after completing their studies. It also helps students move to H-1B work visa through employer sponsorship.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons said the OPT programme has become a ‘magnet for fraud’. He claimed that several investigations by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) found serious misuse of the system.

According to ICE, investigators conducted site visits and discovered cases where OPT workers were being supervised by employees sitting in India instead of receiving proper training in the United States. Officials said this violates programme rules.

As per reports, Toddy Lyons had said some cases connected to the programme involved espionage, intellectual property theft, visa fraud, employment scams, and crime targeting elderly Americans.

He stated that when the OPT programme started during former President George W. Bush’s administration, it was expected to help only small number of students gain training before returning home.

Officials said the investigations are part of a wider crackdown on immigration and employment fraud in the United States. ICE and DHS are now increasing monitoring of companies hiring foreign students under the OPT programme and checking whether employers are following legal requirements.

As per reports, the issue has created concern among international students, especially Indians, who form one of the largest groups of foreign students in the United States.