OPT Fraud In US: Big Relief To Indian Students

In August 2023, around 70 Indian nationals sued the US government over visa rejections tied to their employers’ fraud.

One of them was a Telugu student, Siddhartha Kalavala Venkata, who couldn’t enter the US after his H-1B visa was denied due to suspected fraud.

Recently, a US court allowed over 90 foreign nationals, mostly Indians, to return to the US after facing visa issues linked to their OPT program employers’ fraud.

OPT allows foreign students, including many Indians, to work in the US, with a large number in STEM fields.

Some companies falsely offered jobs to graduates, approved by the DHS, but later exposed as fraudulent. This led to students being labeled as inadmissible to the US.

Attorney Jonathan Wasden criticized DHS for not stopping this scam earlier and for assuming all students linked to these companies were guilty.

Siddhartha Kalavala Venkata and others are seeking to overturn DHS’s decisions and respond to fraud allegations before being declared inadmissible.

The court’s decision provides relief to affected students, allowing them to continue their academic and professional pursuits in the US.

Wasden advised students to avoid companies charging for training and report suspicious activities to DHS.