E-Paper
What is US' Optional Practical Training (OPT) program for foreign students?
US lawmakers have put forward the ‘Fairness for High-Skilled Americans Act of 2025,’ which seeks to remove the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program.
Amid US President Donald Trump’s crackdown on immigration, the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program could reportedly be revoked or changed in a major way. This would be done to discourage US firms from hiring foreign students in the country.
Notably, US lawmakers have put forward the ‘Fairness for High-Skilled Americans Act of 2025,’ which seeks to remove the OPT. Representative Paul A. Gosar argues that the OPT program affects American workers by allowing employers to hire lower cost foreign labour.
Some US legislators are also suggesting a tax on the earnings of international students in the Optional Practical Training program by removing their current exemption from FICA taxes.
What is the Optional Practical Training program?
Optional practical training is temporary work that is directly linked to an F-1 student’s main field of study. Notably, the F-1 visa is a student visa that allows foreign nationals to study full time in the United States.
Optional Practical Training provides a work opportunity for international F-1 students in the United States, allowing them to take up jobs with American companies either during their studies or after they finish their degree.
Students may take part in OPT for up to 12 months, with a further 24 month extension available for those who hold STEM degrees.
Types of OPT program
There are two types of OPT program:
1. Pre-completion OPT:
You may apply for pre-completion OPT after you have been enrolled full time for one full academic year at a college.
In this case, you do not need to have held F-1 status for that one full academic year; you may meet the “one full academic year” rule even if you had another non-immigrant status during that period, according to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services.
2. Post-completion OPT:
You may apply for post-completion OPT after finishing your studies. If you are approved for post-completion OPT, you must work part time (at least 20 hours per week) or full time.
According to the Open Doors 2025 Report on International Educational Exchange, during the 2024-2025 academic year, the number of international graduate, undergraduate and non-degree students fell by between 2 percent and 4 percent.
However, the number of international students who chose to remain in the United States for practical work experience through OPT rose by 21 percent, reaching 294,253.
How will it impact Indians?
Indian nationals, who make up a large share of OPT students, could be among the worst affected. The common F-1 to OPT to H-1B route, which is the usual way into the US workforce, is already under pressure.
When the recent announcement came that employers who plan to hire new foreign workers from abroad will need to pay the $100,000 fee at the time of filing an H-1B petition, there was one exception that students already in the United States on F-1 visas will not have to pay it.
After graduation, many F-1 students move into Optional Practical Training.
However, with the proposed changes, Indians could be among those most affected.
