The Department of Homeland Security recently published in the Federal Register a notice of proposed rulemaking to impose new fees on F-1 visa students seeking to engage in Optional Practical Training.
An F-1 visa is a type of visa that allows a foreign national to pursue full-time study in the United States at American universities, high schools or certain certified institutions. The F-1 visa also allows a foreign national to apply for Optional Practical Training (OPT), which is a type of work authorization. The OPT restricts the foreign national to work in fields related to their studies. OPT is split into two categories: pre-completion OPT and post-completion OPT.
Pre-completion OPT allows a foreign national to work in their area of study even though they are still studying in their academic program, but only if they have completed at least one full academic year. Another condition is that while school is in session, they are limited to working no more than 20 hours per week. When school is not in session, they can work full-time.
Post-completion OPT is when a foreign national begins work after completion of their studies. They can work full-time, but they must still work in a field related to their studies.
OPT is generally granted for just one year. Any time working on pre-completion OPT is deducted from the time someone can work on post-completion OPT. If a foreign national earned a degree in the science, technology, engineering and math fields (STEM), they are eligible for a 24-month extension of the post-completion OPT.
Under the current system, a foreign national need only pay the filing fee of the work permit application (I-765), which is now $470 for online filing ($520 for paper filing), with an optional premium processing fee of $1,780. STEM OPT extensions repeat this fee payment when filing for the extension.
Raising Fees Could Have Dramatic Effect
With the academic year in full swing, on October 8, 2026, DHS published the notice of proposed rulemaking, which seeks to impose a $70,000 fee for an initial OPT filing — which would apply to those seeking pre-completion or the initial post-completion OPT. For those eligible for the 24-month extension, the subsequent request would cost an additional $30,000. Thus, for a STEM graduate seeking to use the full OPT benefit, it would cost up to $100,000.
Technically, the rule requires the educational institution to pay the fee, since, in order for the student to apply for OPT, the school needs to recommend OPT through the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), which is a mandatory program educational institutions must have that allows DHS to monitor international students enrolled at that particular school and ensure compliance with the terms of their visa. As a practical matter, which the proposed rule does address, the school can simply pass the cost of the fee onto the student or the employer before they issue the OPT recommendation.
At this stage, the proposal does not impose any new fee on students. The agency has only issued a proposed rule, which must undergo the notice-and-comment process required by the Administrative Procedure Act. During that process, stakeholders may submit comments, and DHS may revise the proposal before issuing a final rule. If the rule is ultimately finalized in its current form, it would take effect 60 days after publication of the final rule, potentially affecting international students graduating as early as May 2027.
The proposal also follows closely behind DHS’s recent guidance significantly narrowing the availability of Curricular Practical Training (CPT). Under that guidance, DHS emphasized that CPT must be an integral part of an established curriculum, tied directly to a student’s academic program, and undertaken primarily for educational purposes, rather than employment purposes. The guidance further cautions against the use of CPT by programs that permit immediate employment upon enrollment, offer little academic oversight of the practical training experience, or appear structured principally to provide work authorization, rather than bona fide instruction. DHS also indicated it will subject CPT arrangements to increased scrutiny and may challenge schools’ CPT authorizations where the practical training component does not have a clear curricular nexus or sufficient faculty supervision.
Taken together, the CPT guidance and the proposed OPT fees signal a broader policy shift toward restricting employment-based benefits available to F-1 students. If both remain in place, international students may face fewer opportunities to obtain practical work experience during and after their studies, potentially diminishing the attractiveness of U.S. educational institutions for prospective students seeking both an education and a pathway to professional experience in the United States.
If this rule takes effect, employers seeking to hire highly educated foreign nationals are likely to feel the greatest impact. The proposed fees could discourage many international students from pursuing U.S. employment opportunities, reducing the number of graduates entering the workforce and gaining the experience that often serves as a foundation for future employer-sponsored immigration petitions. In addition, if employers are expected to bear these costs, businesses may be less willing to recruit foreign student talent. As a result, some employers may look instead to sponsor foreign workers directly. However, as discussed in our September 22, 2025, and October 21, 2025, blog posts, many of those employment-based immigration pathways, including the H-1B program, are already subject to their own substantial fees. Universities and other educational institutions could also experience declining international enrollment, particularly among students who view U.S. education as a pathway not only to academic achievement but also to valuable practical work experience in the United States.
Harris Beach Murtha Can Help
Our Immigration Practice Group monitors and analyzes federal immigration decisions and legal matters. We will keep an eye on this proposal and report out developments. If you have questions on this or any other immigration topic, please contact attorney Christian P. Burr at (860) 240-6131 or cburr@harrisbeachmurtha.com, or the Harris Beach Murtha attorney with whom you most frequently work.
This alert is not a substitute for advice of counsel on specific legal issues.
Harris Beach Murtha’s lawyers and consultants practice from offices throughout Connecticut in Bantam, Hartford, New Haven and Stamford; New York State in Albany, Binghamton, Buffalo, Ithaca, New York City, Niagara Falls, Rochester, Saratoga Springs, Syracuse, Long Island and White Plains; as well as in Boston, Massachusetts; Providence, Rhode Island; and Newark, New Jersey.