Post-Study Work Rights Compared

You finish your degree abroad. Now what? The answer depends entirely on which country you studied in. Post-study work rights determine how long you can stay and work after graduation, and whether that time can lead to something permanent.

United States

F-1 students get 12 months of post-completion OPT. If your degree is in a STEM field, you can extend that by 24 months, for a total of 3 years.

Your job must be "directly related to your major area of study." You can't finish a biology degree and go work in marketing. Your employer also needs to be enrolled in E-Verify for the STEM extension.

OPT is a temporary work authorization, not a visa status. You're still on F-1. If you want to stay longer, you'll need to transition to an H-1B or another work visa, which means entering the H-1B lottery. The annual cap and lottery system make this the least predictable post-study pathway of the four countries here.

United Kingdom

The Graduate visa lets you stay 2 years after a bachelor's or master's degree (3 years for PhD holders). You can work at any skill level, no employer sponsorship needed.

Applications submitted on or after January 1, 2027 will only get 18 months instead of 2 years, per the UK's recent immigration white paper. If you're graduating in 2026, apply before the cutoff.

The Graduate visa doesn't lead directly to settlement. To get on the permanent residency track, you'll need to switch to a Skilled Worker visa (which requires employer sponsorship) and spend 5 years on that route.

Canada

Canada's PGWP is the most generous of the four. Master's graduates get a 3-year open work permit regardless of program length, as long as the program was at least 8 months. For other programs, the permit matches your study duration, up to a maximum of 3 years.

"Open" means you can work for any employer, in any field. No restriction to your major.

The PGWP also feeds directly into permanent residency. Work experience gained on a PGWP counts toward Express Entry's Canadian Experience Class, which is one of the most common PR pathways. This is the biggest structural advantage of studying in Canada.

As of November 2024, you need to provide proof of language proficiency when applying for a PGWP.

Australia

Australia's post-higher education work stream gives degree holders 2 to 3 years of work rights depending on qualification level. You must be 35 or under to apply.

The vocational stream (for diploma and trade qualifications) gives up to 18 months.

Like Canada, work experience on this visa can help your case for permanent residency through the skilled migration points system. Unlike Canada, the path to PR requires a separate skills assessment and meeting a points threshold that can shift with each invitation round.

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