Optional Practical Training (OPT) Fees for F-1 Students
Current understanding
DHS has proposed a rule imposing a $70,000 fee on F-1 students for initial Optional Practical Training (OPT) work authorization and $30,000 for any subsequent OPT period, framed as anti-fraud and U.S. worker protection measures. If finalized, the fees would be a sharp cost increase over current OPT application charges and would materially alter the post-graduation work calculus for international students at U.S. institutions, as well as hiring pipelines for employers that rely on OPT. Status: proposed rule.
Evidence log
- 2026-10-08 — Optional Practical Training Fees: cross-connection with exchange-visitor-program-termination-extension-reinstatement: Both are agency rulemakings reshaping work and status conditions for nonimmigrant students and exchange visitors (F-1 OPT via DHS; J-1 via State), affecting the same university-sponsored population. (novelty: 4)