On November 6, 2026, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and the American Immigration Council (AIC) submitted a joint comment opposing a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposed rule, published on October 8, 2026, that would impose a $70,000 fee for an initial period of Optional Practical Training (OPT) and a fee of $30,000 for any subsequent OPT.
AILA and AIC noted in their joint comment that the rule would require a Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP)-certified school to pay a fee of $70,000 before its Designated School Official (DSO) may recommend an F-1 international student for an initial period of OPT and a fee of $30,000 before the DSO may recommend a student for any subsequent OPT (including the up to 24-month OPT STEM extension). “Although framed as a fee, the Rule would impose charges so large that they would function as a prohibition or deterrent, significantly diminishing the viability of the OPT program. Departing from past practice in all its previous fee rules, DHS does not tie the fee amounts to any cost of administering OPT; instead, the Rule candidly embraces deterrence and a dramatic reduction in OPT participation as its objectives.” AILA and AIC said that the proposed rule “exceeds DHS’s statutory authority, is contrary to the intent of Congress, and is arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act.”
AILA and AIC also noted that “DHS assumes, without support, that the fees will not reduce international enrollment or the number of STEM graduates, and it fails to quantify the Rule’s substantial costs to U.S. institutions, U.S. students, innovation, and the U.S. economy, despite independent research available to the contrary.” They also said the 30-day comment period was “insufficient to address the scope, impact, and complexity of the Proposed Rule. The short comment period deprives stakeholders of a meaningful opportunity to comment and will produce an inadequate administrative record.”
