- July 31, 2026
$100,000 Price Tag To Work In US? Trump Admin Eyes New Fee For Foreign Students: Report
Last Updated:
According to the WSJ report, the proposed fee would apply to international students seeking to extend their stay after completing their studies.
Students from the Columbia School of Professional Studies prepare to walk the stage during the graduation ceremony. (AFP file photo)
The Trump administration is considering a plan to charge international students a $100,000 fee to remain in the United States and work after graduating from American universities, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.
If implemented, the proposal would make it significantly more expensive for foreign graduates to continue their careers in the US and could affect one of the most popular pathways for international talent to enter the American workforce.
Move Could Hit Students, Universities and Employers
According to the WSJ report, the proposed fee would apply to international students seeking to extend their stay after completing their studies.
The move would particularly affect the Optional Practical Training (OPT) programme, which allows foreign students on F-1 visas to gain work experience related to their fields after graduation.
The Trump administration has previously targeted OPT, arguing that the programme can be misused for visa fraud and overstays.
The potential fee is part of a broader push by the administration to tighten legal immigration rules. Earlier this month, the administration finalised rules limiting the length of stay for foreign students and journalists in the US.
Under the new rules, international students would generally be admitted for the duration of their academic programme, up to a maximum of four years, instead of receiving open-ended admission periods.
The proposed $100,000 fee could also impact US universities and major employers, particularly in sectors such as technology and finance that rely heavily on international graduates for skilled roles.
The US hosted more than 1.1 million international students during the 2023-24 academic year, with foreign students contributing billions of dollars to the US economy.
The proposal follows the administration’s wider efforts to restrict immigration pathways, including a similar $100,000 fee introduced for H-1B visas, which are widely used by companies to hire skilled foreign workers. A federal judge recently ruled that the H-1B fee was illegal, though the administration has challenged the decision.
(With inputs from agencies)
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