The University of Farmington – Key Points and Lessons for F-1 CPT Students

Many of our readers are aware of the University of Farmington story from earlier this year when federal agents arrested and charged a number of individuals described as brokers, recruiters and students with a number of violations, including conspiracy to commit visa fraud and overstaying lawful status.  The university, which turned out to be a fake institution set-up by federal authorities, was shut down and a multitude of enrolled F-1 foreign students were not only left without status in the United States but a number have been arrested by ICE and put in removal proceedings.      This article seeks to describe the lessons and the importance for F-1 students seeking to maintain status, especially under the F-1 CPT program.

Background of the University of Farmington Closure

The University of Farmington story was widely reported over the last couple of weeks (see Google News and New York Times).     Essentially, around January 29 and 30, 2019, federal authorities announced that the University of Farmington had actually been set-up as part of a sting operation and was actually run by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).    The announcement included the arrest of several individuals who were brokers who recruited foreign students (mainly Chinese and Indian nationals) to the university when they (the recruiters) knew that the university would not have real classes.   At the same time, about 130 foreign students who had enrolled at the university were detailed by ICE on visa violations.    According to the allegations, the brokers, working with people posing as university officials, then charged the students in a scheme that allowed them to maintain their student visas and stay in the country, the government said.

“Each of the foreign citizens who ‘enrolled’ and made ‘tuition’ payments to the University knew that they would not attend any actual classes, earn credits, or make academic progress toward an actual degree in a particular field of study,” the indictments says, including that students knew that “discretion should be used when discussing the program with others.”

The allegations raised by federal authorities are that brokers, recruiters and employers sought to use University of Farmington in order to enroll F-1 foreign students when it was clear that the students would not need to attend classes and/or meet other requirements for valid F-1 status.    The University had issued I-20 documents allowing foreign national students to come (or remain into) to the U.S. and authorized Curriculum Practical Training (CPT) employment to a number of its students.  While CPT is perfectly legitimate form of employment while on F-1 status,  it has a number of requirements, including attending classes.

University of Farmington Students Held and Many Left Without Valid F-1 Status

As a result of the closure, many F-1 students who were enrolled and in the U.S. pursuant to F-1 status had their SEVIS record terminated and many were put in removal proceedings.   Similarly, it appears that former University of Farmington students who have transferred to other schools or who have changed status (for example, to H-1B) are also being contacted by ICE.

What Happens to the  Students Enrolled in University of Farmington?

The initial reaction by USCIS and CBP was that these students are in violation of their F-1 status and should be subject to removal proceedings.   It is not yet clear whether USCIS may consider the possibility of allowing affected students to reinstate their F-1 student status by filing of Form I-539.   It is possible that USCIS would consider reinstatement of F-1 status applications on a case-by-case basis.

Reinstatement of F-1 Status Requirements

Generally, the eligibility requirements for reinstatement of F-1 status are as follows:

• The student must be currently enrolled or intend to enroll for a full-time course load;
• Can establish that the violation of status resulted from circumstances beyond his/her control;
• Has not engaged in unauthorized employment;
• Has not been out of status for more than 5 months;
• Can document sufficient financial resources to pursue a full-time course load;
• Does not have a history of repeated violations; and
• Is not deportable from the US on any other grounds.

In an extraordinary case such as University of Farmington, some of its students may run into difficulties meeting all of the eligibility requirements.  Specifically, the requirement of not being out of status for five months is likely to affect many of the students if the government may consider the violation of status to have occurred earlier in the F-1 term or CPT employment.   Similarly, students may have challenging time to prove that the circumstances were outside of their control if they were aware that they will not need to attend courses as required by the F-1 regulations.

Is Day-1 CPT Unlawful?

There has been much discussion and speculation that “Day-1” CPT is unlawful and this is the sole reason which caused University of Farmington students to get in trouble.     We disagree.   While “Day-1 CPT” has been scrutinized by DHS over the recent past,  such CPT has been and remains authorized by the F-1 regulations assuming all other F-1 requirements are met.

Importance of Good F-1 Practices

The University of Farmington case illustrates how important it is for an F-1 student to understand and follow proper F-1 practices.  While it is possible that some students at the University of Farmington may not have been aware of the university’s purposefully not following the proper F-1 requirements, it is plain to see how, according to the government’s allegations, some students were fully aware of the F-1 program irregularities committed by the school but continued nonetheless because the university offered them an opportunity to stay in the U.S. and work under CPT.

This is not the only such example.    A very similar “sting” operations caught more than 1,000 students at a “fake” University of Northern Near Jersey in 2016.   The story of Tri Valley University (from 2010-2011) is another very similar example where the university (it was real) simply did not bother to follow properly the F-1 regulations and in that case more than 1,600 foreign students were left without status when the university’s SEVP record was cancelled.

Unfortunately, there are other universities whose F-1 practices, based on anecdotal evidence, may be borderline improper.  A few of the red flags are: the school authorizes full load of online courses (only one per semester is permitted), the school authorized CPT in employment unrelated to the student’s degree, the school issued I-20 knowing that the student would not reside within driving distance of the school’s campus or would be otherwise able to attend classes in person.

In light of this investigation, it is possible that other schools may be subject to increased scrutiny and investigation.  We are happy to have a phone consultation to help you evaluate your F-1 status terms and help you understand your options in case you have doubts.

How Our Office Can Help?

If you are a student affected by the University of Farmington shutdown or have concerns about your university’s F-1 compliance, please contact us.  We would be happy to consult with you and analyze your options for filing for reinstatement of F-1 status, among other alternatives, if available.   Alternatively, we urge all F-1 students to keep in mind that it is also their responsibility to maintain F-1 status by following all relevant rules and regulations.    Also, please feel free to subscribe to our free weekly newsletter to obtain developments on this and related topics.