USCIS posted on their I-9 Central website that temporarily, certain I-797 approval notices (including for OPT/STEM OPT) may be used as a List C #7 document for I-9 purposes. To qualify, the approval notice must have a “notice date” between December 1, 2019 and August 20, 2020. If your approval notice is issued after August 20, it will not qualify for this temporary exception. Also, employers who use the approval notice for I-9 purposes are required to update the I-9 with the actual EAD by December 1, 2020.