On October 7, 2026, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released a proposed rule, Optional Practical Training Fees, that would impose substantial new fees on Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certified schools recommending F-1 students for Optional Practical Training (OPT). The proposal would establish a $70,000 fee for an initial OPT recommendation and a $30,000 fee for each subsequent OPT recommendation, citing fraud prevention, immigration system integrity, and protection of U.S. workers.

The proposal would cover pre-completion OPT, post-completion OPT, and STEM OPT extensions. Schools would be required to pay the applicable fee before recommending a student for OPT. The $70,000 fee would apply to the first recommendation after the rule takes effect even if that recommendation is for a STEM OPT extension with subsequent recommendations subject to the $30,000 fee. Although schools would be responsible for payment, DHS contemplates that they could pass the costs on to students or employers.

What this means right now
These fees are not in effect. Students, schools, and employers should continue following current OPT requirements. Under the proposal, OPT recommendations issued before the effective date would not trigger the new fees for those periods of OPT. If implemented, the fees could substantially affect access to practical training and employers’ recruitment and retention of international graduates.

What's Next
The proposed rule is scheduled for publication in the Federal Register on October 8, 2026, followed by a 30-day public comment period. DHS must consider public comments before issuing a final rule and proposes implementation 60 days after publication of that final rule. The proposal may change during rulemaking, and any final rule could face legal challenges. We are closely monitoring this development and will provide updates as they become available.

SEVP issued two Broadcast Messages, on August 12 and on August 24, addressing CPT authorization.

The guidance places additional emphasis on whether CPT is truly an integral part of an established curriculum and provides additional direction to Designated School Officials (DSO) when evaluating CPT requests.

This is particularly significant for programs where students have historically used CPT for internships or other practical training through elective coursework Universities should review whether their CPT programs:

• Are an integral part of the established curriculum;
• Are directly related to the student's major; and
• Meet SEVP's requirements for CPT authorization.

Students considering CPT should work with their school's DSO to determine whether their proposed training qualifies under the school's current policies.

DHS finalized a rule that, among other updates, eliminates D/S admission for F-1 students, J-1 exchange visitors, and I-visa foreign media representatives, replacing it with a fixed admission period tied to the end date on the Form I-20 or DS-2019; capped at 4-years (or 2-years for English-language program students). Individuals needing more time will need to file an extension of stay application with USCIS, rather than relying on the Designated School Official or Responsible Officer to extend SEVIS records administratively.

Highlights of Changes:

• I-94 records will show a specific expiration date instead of D/S.
• Extensions of stay require a formal USCIS filing (Form I-539).
• Remains unclear whether a student seeking OPT or STEM OPT can concurrently file an I-765 or if the I-539 must be approved first.
• The F-1 grace period shrinks from 60 days to 30 days.
• Changes of academic program or educational level within the first year of F-1 status face new restrictions.
• The rule removes regulatory codification of USCIS’s prior deference policy on extensions.

This rule reaches further than campus advising offices. Employers sponsoring F-1 employees on OPT or STEM OPT, or hosting J-1 trainees and interns, now need to track a hard admission expiration date rather than assuming continued status through program completion. For H-1B-bound F-1 employees in particular, cap-gap timing, OPT-to-H-1B transitions, and any gap in authorized stay become higher-stakes calendar items. We encourage employers to build I-539 extension lead time into sponsorship planning. DHS and outside commentary both point to 12 months out for multi-year programs (PhDs, postdocs) as a reasonable planning horizon.

We will monitor actual USCIS processing data and advise clients accordingly as this will be subject to change.

Background:

On August 28, 2025, DHS published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) titled, “Establishing a Fixed Time Period of Admission and an Extension of Stay Procedure for Nonimmigrant Academic Students, Exchange Visitors, and Representatives of Foreign Information Media”.

Current Admission Framework:

Upon entry into the U.S., most nonimmigrants are issued an I-94 Arrival/Departure Record confirming their class of admission and “Admit Until Date”. That document controls their period of authorized stay in the U.S. This also requires them to leave or request an extension of stay through USCIS before it expires. The procedure for students (F-1) and exchange visitors (J) is slightly different. They are generally issued an I-94 with an “Admit Until Date” of “D/S”, standing for “duration of status”. This allows admission into the U.S. for the duration of their academic or training program as authorized by a valid Form I-20 or DS-2019.

Designated school officials and program sponsors are responsible for authorizing and monitoring students and exchange visitors in the U.S. This includes authorizing program changes and extensions, through SEVIS. SERVIS is a DHS computer system that stores information and controls the authorized status of F and J nonimmigrants. The NPRM claims this is an insufficient means for tracking students and exchange visitors in the U.S. and proposes a new framework to provide additional oversight of these nonimmigrant classifications and allow DHS to better evaluate whether they are maintaining status in the United States.