An Employment Authorization Document (EAD), filed on Form I-765, is the work-permit filing many F-1 students use for OPT and STEM OPT as well as other status categories. USCIS announced on 12 December 2025 that it would stop accepting self-submitted photos and photograph filers at an Application Support Center (ASC) instead — but the Form I-765 instructions and the USCIS filing checklist still ask for two identical passport-style photographs taken within 30 days of filing, and university international offices have been advising students to keep sending them until USCIS updates those documents.
Fast diagnosis
The riskiest mistake is leaving the two photographs out because of the December 2025 announcement, when the USCIS filing checklist still lists them as required initial evidence — a missing item can cost you a Request for Evidence. The second is the 30-day rule: a supplied photo must be taken within 30 days of filing, not within six months. The third is glasses without a documented medical exception. Unlike a Green Card or naturalization filing, USCIS may reuse a biometrics photo already on file for Form I-765 if it is less than 36 months (three years) old.
The December 2025 announcement says USCIS will no longer accept self-submitted photos, but the Form I-765 instructions and the USCIS filing checklist still list two identical passport-style photographs as required initial evidence. Until USCIS updates them, include the photos and attend any biometrics appointment as well — an extra pair of prints costs little, a missing required item can cost you a Request for Evidence.
USCIS warns on its own Form I-765 page that mounted or retouched photographs slow processing down and can lead to a call into an Application Support Center to confirm your identity. Phone beautification filters count as retouching, so shoot with every enhancement switched off.
Unlike Form I-485, N-400 or N-600, Form I-765 allows USCIS to reuse a biometrics photo already on file if it is less than 36 months old, at USCIS's discretion. You may not need a new appointment at all if you were recently captured for another filing.
The standard USCIS rule applies: glasses are not permitted unless you cannot remove them for a documented medical reason, supported by a dated letter from your eye doctor.
For the cases that still submit a photo — for example, a paper filing made before an ASC notice arrives — the background must be plain white or off-white, the same as a US passport photo.
Historic paper filings asked applicants to write their name and A-number lightly in pencil or felt-tip pen on the back of both photos. Skipping this step, or pressing hard enough to mark the front of the photo, is a common paper-filing error.
The USCIS deadline is far tighter than the six months a passport or visa photo is allowed: a supplied photograph must have been taken within 30 days of filing. A photo from two months ago is already too old for USCIS even though it would still pass at a passport office.
Yes, for now. USCIS announced on 12 December 2025 that it would no longer accept self-submitted photos and would photograph most filers at a biometrics appointment. But the Form I-765 instructions and the USCIS filing checklist have not been updated and still ask for two identical passport-style photographs taken within 30 days of filing. Until they are, the safer course — and the one university international offices advise — is to include the two photos anyway.
Follow the instructions and send the photos. The checklist USCIS publishes for Form I-765 lists the same two photographs as required initial evidence, so this is not a stale printout contradicting a live rule — the two documents genuinely disagree. Attend your biometrics appointment as well if you are scheduled for one. An extra pair of prints costs little; a missing required item can cost you a Request for Evidence.
Possibly. Form I-765 is one of the filings where USCIS may reuse a biometrics photo already on file if it is less than 36 months old, at its own discretion. This is different from a Green Card or naturalization filing, where a new appointment is required every time.
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