On May 21, 2020, Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA) sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Acting Secretary Chad Wolf expressing concerns about companies that provide fake employment offers to foreign students so they can meet Optional Practical Training (OPT) employment requirements, extend their F-1 visas, and remain in the United States after graduation. Mr. Grassley cited recent news reports, among them a January 2020 article by NBC News, “Thousands of Foreign Students in U.S. on Student Visas May Have ‘Worked’ for Fake Companies.”
Among other things, Sen. Grassley said that “it is important to establish how many fraudulent companies are still actively facilitating visa fraud and what, if any, relationships exist between visa mills posing as educational institutions and phony companies providing fabricated employment verification for F-1 visa extensions.” He sent a list of questions to be answered by June 5, 2020.
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