Colleges and universities would have to pay $70,000 for each international student they recommend for Optional Practical Training (OPT) under a Trump administration proposal announced Oct. 7, with an additional $30K for any additional year in the program. The fee could put the program out of reach for many institutions and international students and weaken a key draw for studying in the United States.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposal comes alongside two other developments affecting international students: an administration appeal seeking to restore a rule that would limit how long students can stay in the country and a higher education lawsuit challenging new limits on Curricular Practical Training.
Proposed Fees Could Put OPT Out of Reach
OPT allows international students with F-1 visas to gain work experience related to their field of study during or after college. Students generally can participate for up to 12 months, under the program, created by President George H.W. Bush. Eligible science, technology, engineering, and mathematics graduates can receive a 24-month extension under an expansion of the program created by President George W. Bush.
Under the proposed rule, institutions would have to pay $70,000 before recommending a student for initial OPT and $30,000 for subsequent OPT, including an extension. Students currently must remit $520 to apply for permission to work.
Strikingly, this new fee would go directly to the U.S. Treasury for unspecified purposes. The current $520 goes to DHS to pay for the processing and other DHS operations, such as fraud investigations and enforcement.
“We’ve never seen anything like this,” Sarah Spreitzer, ACE’s vice president and chief of staff for government relations, told Politico.
Spreitzer said colleges would be unlikely to cover the cost themselves. “It’s highly unlikely that our institutions would pay the fee straight out,” she said. “They would likely pass that fee along to the student in the form of tuition and fees.”
The proposal could also discourage students from choosing U.S. colleges at a time when campuses are already reporting declines in international enrollment.
“We know that OPT is one of the reasons that international students choose to study in the United States because they’re able to have that post-graduation work experience,” Spreitzer told The Associated Press.
The fees would take effect 60 days after a final rule is published. ACE plans to submit comments to DHS and ask the agency to withdraw this flawed proposed rule.
Administration Appeals Duration-of-Status Ruling
The administration is also seeking to overturn a court order blocking a DHS rule that would end the longstanding “duration of status” framework for international students, exchange visitors, and foreign media representatives.
Duration of status generally allows students to stay in the United States while pursuing their approved studies and maintaining their immigration status. The rule would replace that approach with fixed periods of admission, requiring students who need more time to apply for an extension. It would also restrict their ability to change programs or institutions.
On Sept. 30, the administration asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit to lift the preliminary injunction Judge F. Dennis Saylor issued Sept. 14.
NAFSA, the Presidents’ Alliance, and labor unions brought the lawsuit challenging the rule, which remains blocked while the administration seeks to lift the injunction.
ACE has opposed replacing duration of status with fixed time limits. In comments submitted with other higher education associations in September 2025, ACE warned that a four-year limit would not fit many academic programs and that a new extension process could cause delays, disrupt students’ studies and work opportunities, and add paperwork for campuses.
Higher Education Groups Challenge CPT Restrictions
Four higher education associations filed suit Oct. 5 to block new federal guidance restricting Curricular Practical Training (CPT), a program that allows international students to participate in internships, practicums, and other work experiences that are part of their studies.
The Association of American Universities (AAU), the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, NAFSA: Association of International Educators, and the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities in Massachusetts filed the lawsuit in federal district court in Massachusetts.
At issue are two broadcast messages U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement sent to designated school officials in August. The guidance says schools should approve CPT only when the work experience is required for a degree. The associations say that changes an interpretation the government had followed for more than 35 years.
The messages warned that schools could lose their certification to enroll international students and that individual officials could face perjury penalties for approving CPT that does not meet the new interpretation.
The associations argue that the government violated the Administrative Procedure Act by abruptly changing its position without considering how colleges and students had relied on the previous policy. They also argue that the government cannot apply the new interpretation retroactively.