Severe Economic Hardship Work Authorization | Current International Students

Severe Economic Hardship Employment is off-campus employment authorization for students who are experiencing serious financial difficulties caused by unforeseen circumstances beyond their control. If authorized, you may get any kind of legal job, anywhere, work a maximum of 20 hours per week while school is in session, and work full-time during vacation periods.

This type of work authorization is extremely hard to get and will only be recommended by an OGEadvisor when students have considerable documentation for the situation and that it meets the criteria of being unforeseen and beyond the student's control. USCIS has specifically stated that applications based on the following reasons will be denied:

• Loss of scholarship when going beyond time for which scholarship was granted or exceeding program eligibility limit for funding
• Failure to give evidence of the hardship; both pre-and post-event documentation is required
• Internet articles of conditions in home country that don't demonstrate how the financial sponsor was individually affected
• Parents retiring or other siblings going to school
• Medical condition existent prior to the time the I-20 was issued
• Increasing tuition (it is common knowledge that tuition is expected to increase each year)

To Apply

Students interested in applying for an Economic Hardship work authorization must contact OGE to schedule an appointment to see an advisor.

Severe Economic Hardship Work Authorization Eligibility

To be eligible for a Severe Economic Hardship Work Authorization you must:

• Be maintaining lawful F-1 visa status
• Have been enrolled full time for an academic year
• Maintain full-time enrollment
• Ensure that employment will not interfere with studies
• Demonstrate that the employment is necessary to avoid severe economic hardship due to unforeseen economic circumstances beyond your control

Documentation Required

• Completed Carroll University Severe Economic Hardship Request Form
• A personal statement describing the unforeseen hardship situation
• Documentation of the situation
• Completed Form I-765, using the code (C)(3)(iii) at item 16. Do not date form until after you have met with an OGE Advisor and you are ready to send the application to USCIS
• Copies of your current and previous I-20s
• Copy of paper or print-out of electronic Form I-94
• Copy of your F-1 visa page (except Canadians)
• Copy of your unofficial transcript, available from the Carroll University portal

Social Security Number

All students receiving an Economic Hardship Work Authorization will be required to obtain a Social Security number. Please review our Social Security Numbers page for more information.

More Information

Contact an OGE Advisor for more information.