Is Trump Charging Foreign Graduates $100,000 to Work in America? What the OPT Proposal Actually Means
International students have awakened to another alarming US immigration headline: the Trump administration is supposedly charging foreign graduates $100,000 to find a job after completing an American degree.
The direct answer is no—not yet.
No $100,000 Optional Practical Training fee has been announced, published in the Federal Register or imposed on international students as of August 2, 2026. What is real is a fresh Wall Street Journal report, published on July 30, saying officials inside the Department of Homeland Security are discussing such a charge. The White House has not approved it, and officials reportedly have not decided whether students, employers or universities would be responsible for paying it.
What Is Actually Being Considered?
The reported proposal concerns Optional Practical Training, commonly called OPT—not ordinary job searching.
OPT allows eligible F-1 students to work in a position directly related to their degree for up to 12 months. Graduates of eligible science, technology, engineering and mathematics programmes may request a further 24-month STEM OPT extension, potentially providing up to three years of post-study employment authorization.
The viral claim that “foreign graduates must pay $100,000 to find work in America” is therefore misleading in three (3) ways:
- It is not currently an active fee.
- It would concern OPT work authorization, not the act of submitting job applications.
- It would target eligible international graduates of US institutions—not every foreign graduate worldwide.
ICE recorded 194,554 regular OPT authorizations and 95,384 STEM OPT authorizations during 2024. Those figures may contain students appearing in more than one practical-training category, but they show why universities and major employers are taking even an unapproved proposal seriously.
How Could the Administration Introduce This Fee?
A newly finalized student-status rule may provide the administrative opening.
Beginning September 15, 2026, F-1 students will generally be admitted for a fixed period connected to their academic programme instead of the older “duration of status” system. Students who need additional authorized time to undertake post-completion OPT or STEM OPT may have to apply to USCIS for an extension of stay.
The Journal reported that officials may attempt to attach the proposed $100,000 amount to this new extension process. However, the final rule published on July 17 does not itself establish a $100,000 OPT charge. A possible administrative route is not the same thing as an enacted fee.
Why Is the Trump Administration Considering It?
DHS has already placed “Practical Training” reform on its regulatory agenda. The department says it wants to address fraud and national-security concerns, improve federal oversight and protect American workers from being displaced by foreign nationals.
Supporters of tighter rules argue that OPT gives employers access to foreign graduates who may cost less to employ and compete with Americans entering the same labour market.
Critics see a six-figure charge differently: not as a reasonable processing fee, but as a financial barrier intended to make OPT unusable for everyone except wealthy graduates or corporations prepared to pay for them. Since many international students depend on post-study work to gain experience and recover part of the cost of an American degree, the policy could also reduce university enrolment and push skilled graduates—and eventually some jobs—outside the United States.
Is This Merely Recycled H-1B News?
No, but the two stories are directly connected.
President Trump imposed a separate $100,000 payment on certain new H-1B petitions in September 2025. A federal court vacated that requirement on June 8, 2026, finding that it functioned as an unauthorized tax and had been implemented unlawfully. The First Circuit refused to suspend that decision on July 24, and USCIS confirmed on July 28 that DHS would comply while considering its next steps.
That earlier H-1B payment generally did not affect F-1 graduates changing status from inside the United States. The newly reported OPT proposal would target international students at an earlier stage—before they reach H-1B sponsorship.
It is therefore best understood as a fresh proposal within the same broader immigration strategy, rather than an old H-1B headline being recycled.
Could a $100,000 OPT Fee Survive in Court?
Nobody can answer that confidently without seeing the actual regulation and its claimed legal authority.
OPT was created and developed through executive regulations, meaning an administration has considerable authority to revise the programme through proper rulemaking. But the power to regulate OPT does not automatically mean DHS can impose any financial amount it chooses.
A $100,000 charge would almost certainly face lawsuits alleging that it:
- operates as an unauthorized tax;
- bears little relationship to the government’s processing costs;
- exceeds DHS’s fee-setting authority;
- or violates notice-and-comment and other administrative-law requirements.
Those resemble the arguments that defeated the H-1B payment. The administration could attempt to use a different statutory justification or conduct formal rulemaking, but litigation would be highly likely.
What Are Students Saying on Reddit and X?
The online discussion is concentrating on five questions:
- Is the $100k fee already active?
- Who would have to pay it?
- Would current students and existing OPT holders be protected?
- Will employers stop interviewing F-1 graduates before any rule even appears?
- Should prospective students reconsider expensive US admissions?
Student-focused Reddit discussions show considerable anxiety that uncertainty alone will make employers more reluctant to hire international graduates. Some users believe US courts would quickly block the charge, while others argue that OPT may be easier for the executive branch to alter because it was established administratively.
The reaction is not universally negative. Communities representing American technology workers are supporting tougher restrictions, arguing that domestic graduates face unfair employment competition.
On X, immigration lawyers and international graduates are also contrasting the proposal with Trump’s June 2024 suggestion that foreign graduates should receive green cards with their diplomas. Critics say the reported fee represents almost the opposite policy direction. Supporters respond that protecting American graduates should take priority.
Should International Students Change Their Plans?
Students should not pay anyone, abandon a US admission offer or assume that OPT has ended because of social-media posts.
Existing OPT procedures remain in effect. Current students should continue following official USCIS instructions and consult their university’s designated school official before making immigration or employment decisions.
The accurate conclusion on August 2, 2026 is this: the $100,000 OPT story is credible reporting about a serious internal proposal, but it is not an approved fee, not an enforceable rule and not proof that America’s post-study work route has already closed.