DHS proposes a $70,000 fee for each foreign graduate who wants to work in the US

The Department of Homeland Security proposed charging $70,000 per F-1 student for initial Optional Practical Training work authorization and $30,000 for any later OPT period, including STEM extensions. Schools would pay before recommending a student.

The proposal is open for comment from Oct. 8 to Nov. 9 and would take effect 60 days after a final rule; nothing changes yet. DHS estimates the fees would raise $8.4 billion to $16.5 billion a year.

A DHS spokesperson said OPT “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.”