US proposes $70,000 fee for OPT work permits: what it means for Indian students, comments close 9 November

The US Department of Homeland Security wants universities to pay $70,000 each time they recommend a foreign student for Optional Practical Training for the first time. That is the core of a proposed rule DHS announced on 7 October and placed in the Federal Register for publication on 8 October 2026. Any later OPT for the same student, including the STEM extension, would cost another $30,000.

For Indian students, OPT is often what makes a US degree add up. It lets F-1 students work in their field for up to 12 months at each degree level, with up to 24 more months for STEM graduates, and for many it is the bridge to an H-1B petition. Nothing changes yet. This is a proposal, and the public can comment until 9 November.

Who would pay, and when

The fee falls on the school. Under the proposal, an SEVP-certified college or university must pay before its designated school official enters an OPT recommendation in SEVIS, and USCIS would not grant the work permit if the fee has not been paid. DHS says the charge is not tied to any employer. It is triggered only when a school recommends a student.

The $70,000 is a one-time charge for a student's first OPT of any kind, whether taken during the course or after graduation. Every later OPT recommendation costs $30,000. The rule's own example is a student who does pre-completion OPT and then post-completion OPT: the school would pay $70,000 and then $30,000, even if the employer stays the same.

How schools would cover that money is not something the rule decides. DHS openly expects fewer recommendations. The proposal says the fee should make schools exercise greater oversight and selectivity, and its cost analysis assumes a smaller pool of OPT participants.

The proposal is about money, not the length of work rights. It leaves the 12-month OPT period and the 24-month STEM extension as they are, but puts a price on each recommendation. DHS counts about 6,186 SEVP-certified schools as of June 2026, from K-12 schools to large universities, and every one that recommends students for OPT would face the charge.

Why DHS says it is doing this

The department says its Student and Exchange Visitor Program has found schools, school officials, employers and students running schemes to exploit OPT, including problematic worksites and pay-to-stay arrangements. A DHS spokesperson said OPT had been turned into a pipeline for cheap foreign labour. The money collected would go to the US Treasury.

The proposal also shows how large the programme has become. DHS records 194,554 OPT authorisations with employment start dates in 2024, up from 160,627 in 2023 and 99,323 in 2015. STEM OPT extensions reached 95,384 in 2024. DHS estimates the fees would move between $8.7 billion and $16.9 billion a year from schools to the government, with a central estimate of $12.8 billion.

What happens to students already in the US

If the rule is finalised, it would take effect 60 days after the final version is published. The fee would apply to OPT recommendations dated on or after that day. According to the proposal, students already on OPT, or already holding a school recommendation issued before the effective date, would not be charged.

That leaves students who graduate in December 2026 or May 2027 unsure where they stand, because it depends on whether and when DHS finalises the rule. Anyone weighing a US admission offer this winter should follow the official docket rather than social media claims. It is one more cost change in US work routes, after the $100,000 H-1B payment was extended to September 2027.

Families comparing destinations may also want to look at the UK, where the student visa funds requirement rises on 30 November, and weigh total costs, not just tuition.

How to comment

Comments must be filed through regulations.gov under docket ICEB-2026-0100 by 9 November. DHS says emails and letters sent to the department will not be treated as comments. A separate 60-day window applies to the paperwork section of the rule. Students can also ask their international student office how the university plans to respond. A second US immigration rule open for comment this month is USCIS's plan to make online filing compulsory.