DHS Proposes Dramatic Increase in Fees for International Students’ Optional Practical Training

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A proposed rule dramatically increases the fees for foreign students on F-1 visas interested in the Optional Practical Training program-one route by which international graduates of U.S. nursing, therapy, social work, and health administration programs move into their first jobs.

A Department of Homeland Security (DHS) notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) would dramatically increase fees for Optional Practical Training (OPT), the program that allows international students on F-1 visas to work in their field of study during or after a U.S. degree program. Currently, foreign students pay around $500, according to reports; if the rule is finalized as proposed, the fee would rise by 13,900%.

The rule was published in the Federal Register on October 8, 2026 under DHS Docket No. ICEB-2026-0100 (a PDF version of the proposed rule is located here). Comments are due by November 9.

What the proposal would do

Under the proposed rule, an SEVP-certified school would be required to pay:

$70,000 per student the first time the school recommends that student for any type of OPT, whether pre-completion or post-completion of studies.

$30,000 per student for each later OPT recommendation, including the 24-month STEM OPT extension.

The school must pay the fee before its Designated School Official (DSO) can enter the OPT recommendation in SEVIS, and before the student can apply to USCIS for employment authorization. A student who completes pre-completion OPT and then post-completion OPT would cost the school $100,000.

DHS states that schools may pass the cost on to the F-1 students, to all students, or to employers, and the rule sets no limits on how a school collects or sources the money, provided it complies with foreign gift and contract reporting under the Higher Education Act. DHS is also seeking comment on an alternative that would charge the $70,000 initial fee again each time a student moves to a higher degree level, for example after a bachelor's degree and again after a master's degree.

Timing and transition

The fees would apply to DSO recommendations dated on or after the final rule's effective date, which DHS proposes to set at 60 days after the final rule is published. Students already working on OPT, already approved, or holding a DSO recommendation dated before that date would not trigger the fee. However, because the $30,000 subsequent fee applies only where the $70,000 fee was already paid, a student already on OPT who seeks a STEM extension after the effective date would trigger the full $70,000 fee.

Schools may request a refund if the student never receives an Employment Authorization Document (EAD). SEVP would decide refund requests case by case, and those decisions could not be appealed.

DHS's stated rationale

DHS cites fraud in the OPT program, including a Homeland Security Investigations review that identified more than 10,000 OPT students working for what DHS calls "highly suspect employers," along with shell companies and nonexistent worksites. DHS also frames the fee as a protection for U.S. workers and to keep OPT from serving as an alternative to the capped H-1B program. DHS states that without the fees it "cannot operate OPT consistent with its focus on preventing fraud and may shut down the program entirely."

"Optional Practical Training was never meant to be a back door into the American workforce, a subsidy for cheap labor, or a prize for those who game the system," said a DHS Spokesperson. "DHS is upskilling OPT to require foreign students to justify their worth to employers. American workers should not have to compete against a program that has been turned into a pipeline for cheap foreign labor."

DHS's estimates

DHS reports that 194,554 students received OPT authorizations, and 95,384 received STEM OPT authorizations, with employment start dates in 2024. The agency projects annual fee collections of $8.4 billion to $16.5 billion. DHS also estimates that 1,389 of the 2,478 schools that recommended students for OPT from 2022 to 2024 are small entities.

What this means for aging services providers

The nursing pipeline is already tight. More than 600,000 registered nurses reported an intent to leave the workforce by 2027, according to the National Council of State Boards of Nursing.

OPT is one route by which international graduates of U.S. nursing, therapy, social work, and health administration programs move into their first jobs. For some employers it is also the first step toward longer-term visa sponsorship of an employee. Employers could see these fees passed along to them, or partner schools declining to recommend graduates for OPT at all.

Recommended next steps

• Check your current workforce. Identify any employees working on OPT or STEM OPT EADs (categories (c)(3)(A), (c)(3)(B), or (c)(3)(C)). Current OPT workers are not affected unless they need a new OPT recommendation after the effective date, so note anyone approaching a STEM extension. This information will also be useful for future planning if you have routinely utilized OPT workers.
• Talk with your school partners. If you recruit from nursing or other programs, ask how those schools plan to respond and whether they expect to pass costs to students or employers.
• Comment on the proposal. Submit comments at Regulations.gov under Docket No. ICEB-2026-0100 by November 9, 2026. DHS asks commenters to reference specific sections of the proposed rule and to supply data. Concrete information on how OPT graduates fill roles in your organization, what the fee would mean for those roles, and the potential loss of OPT employees would mean to access to care are the most useful inputs.
• Share your experience with LeadingAge. If you employ or plan to hire OPT workers, please let us know your thoughts on this proposed rule.

LeadingAge will continue to monitor this rulemaking effort and will share further guidance as it develops. For more information, contact Shane Myers, Associate Director for Immigration Advancement, at [email protected].