OPT Legislation and the Future of International Students
Every fall, American college campuses are bustling with new faces. As of the 2024-2025 academic year, there are approximately 1.177 million international students studying in the United States, with South Korea being the third-largest source country for international students, following India and China. Many of these students utilize a program called OPT (Optional Practical Training) after graduation to gain practical, major-related experience in the U.S. The OPT has become such a natural extension of the student experience that, on graduation day, Korean international students already have OPT applications in mind. However, surprisingly few people are aware that this program, which has been utilized by millions of students for over 30 years, is based solely on administrative regulations rather than law. What the executive branch creates through regulation, the executive branch can abolish through regulation. This means that the program's very existence could be threatened by a change in administration or a shift in policy direction, and indeed, that is what is happening now. On March 19th of this year, a bipartisan bill was introduced in the House of Representatives to put an end to this long-standing instability.
30 Years of Surviving Solely on Rules
“The vitality of an institution depends on the strength of the laws that protect it.”
OPT is an employment program that allows F-1 student visa holders to work in the U.S. for up to 12 months in their field of study after graduation. STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) majors are granted an additional 24 months, allowing them to gain practical experience for a cumulative total of up to 36 months. This program, officially introduced as a federal regulation in 1992 and in operation for over 30 years, its sheer scale hints at its significance within the U.S. higher education ecosystem. In 2024 alone, over 294,000 international students utilized OPT, with STEM OPT approvals exceeding 95,000, a 54% increase from the previous year, marking the fourth consecutive year of growth. This means the number of OPT participants has nearly doubled in 17 years, from around 150,000 in 2007. Given that U.S. universities are touting OPT as a key differentiating factor in attracting international students, and that international students choose schools with the understanding that they can utilize OPT after graduation, any disruption to this program would inevitably impact the international competitiveness of U.S. higher education itself.
The legal basis for this system is found in 8 CFR 214.2(f) of the Code of Federal Regulations. Section 214(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) grants the executive branch broad authority to establish regulations for the entry and stay of nonimmigrant visa holders, and OPT has operated based on this delegation. While the fact that administrations of both parties have maintained this regulation for over 30 years demonstrates the system's practicality, a regulation created by administrative discretion carries entirely different legal weight than a right explicitly guaranteed by Congress through legislation.
The Washington Alliance of Technology Workers (WashTech) targeted this very point. They filed a lawsuit arguing that OPT is a foreign work program created solely by the executive branch without explicit congressional approval, and that it deviates from the original purpose of the F-1 visa, which is ‘study.‘ The core argument was that there is no legal basis to allow foreigners to work under student visa status if they are no longer attending school after graduation. This lawsuit went through the courts over several years. In October 2022, the D.C. Federal Court of Appeals, by a 2-to-1 decision, recognized its legality, stating that OPT 'is reasonably related to the conditions of F-1 visas,' and the Supreme Court's denial of certiorari in October 2023 allowed the current system to be maintained. However, the court ruling did not elevate OPT to the status of law. It is still possible for the executive branch to create new regulations that reduce the duration of OPT, limit its scope, or abolish it entirely.
◆ Pressure compressing from both sides
“One side says it will abolish it, and the other side says it will protect it. And in between, there are people.”
The political environment surrounding OPT has recently deteriorated rapidly. Senator Eric Schmitt (R-MO) released correspondence with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristie Noem on February 26, 2026, calling for ‘the initiation of a process to reform or terminate OPT.‘ In Schmitt's words, the program has devolved into "a low-wage foreign worker pipeline that sacrifices American graduates for the financial benefit of large corporations and educational institutions." One of the core arguments of the opposition is that the program's opponents cite the fact that employers are exempt from paying Social Security and Medicare taxes during the OPT period, making their hiring costs lower than those for American graduates under the same conditions.
In his reply, Secretary Noem confirmed that he would re-evaluate the practical training regulations, including OPT, to align with the President's ‘America First’ immigration policy direction. Amendments related to OPT are already included in DHS's Spring 2026 regulatory agenda (RIN 1653-AA97), and this review is being conducted under the pretexts of protecting the U.S. labor market, preventing fraud, and ensuring national security. Project 2025, which reflects the policy direction of the Trump administration, also designated OPT as a program not approved by Congress and recommended its abolition.
This atmosphere is directly reflected in the numbers. In the summer of 2025, F-1 student visa issuances decreased by 36% compared to the previous year, a drop of approximately 97,000. During the visa interview freeze period, which lasted for about three weeks starting May 27, F, M, and J visa issuances plummeted by 50% year-over-year. In the fall of the same year, new international student enrollment fell by 17%. Looking at countries, from summer 2025 (May-August), F-1 visas from India decreased by 62%, Nepal by 72%, and Nigeria by 52%. 96% of U.S. universities cited the difficulty of the visa process as the primary reason for the decline in international students, and a NAFSA survey warned that 92% of universities believe ‘international students will choose competitor countries like Canada or Australia if OPT disappears." The uncertainty of the system itself is shrinking the inflow of international students.
What the bill contains
“Turning regulations into law is like laying the foundation for a house on sand.”
H.R. 8013, the ‘Keep Innovators in America Act,' introduced on March 19th of this year, directly addresses this structural vulnerability. It was introduced on a bipartisan basis by three representatives: Sam Ricarddo (Democrat, California's 16th District), Jay Obernolte (Republican, California's 23rd District), and Raja Krishnamoorthi (Democrat, Illinois' 8th District). According to a press release from Representative Riccardo, the bill's background is that while administrations from both parties have maintained the OPT program through regulations for over 30 years, it is now time for legal protection.
The first pillar of the bill is to codify the OPT program into federal law. Elevating the program from an administrative regulation to a law will make it impossible to abolish through executive orders or regulatory changes alone. To alter it, a new legislative process requiring passage through both the House and Senate would be necessary, thus acting as a political safeguard. This is an attempt to finally lay a legal foundation on a program that has remained under regulatory status for over 30 years. The second pillar is a provision allowing international students who have pending or approved permanent residency applications to maintain their F-1 status. In the current system, it is not uncommon for permanent residency waiting periods to extend for several years, and during this time, many international students have found themselves in a legal gray area due to the complexities of maintaining F-1 status. This provision will establish an explicit basis for legally pursuing academic studies or OPT periods concurrently with the permanent residency process.
It already has broad support. The ‘US for Success Coalition,’ comprised of over 50 organizations including the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and the Association of International Educators (NAFSA), has officially declared its support. This coalition includes major organizations from industry and academia, such as the IT Industry Council (ITI), FWD.us, the Presidents‘ Alliance, the Council of Graduate Schools, the Compete America Coalition, EnglishUSA, and the American International Recruitment Council (AIRC). Benjamin Johnson, Executive Director of AILA, stated that international students ‘contribute over $40 billion annually to the U.S. economy and support hundreds of thousands of American jobs.’ Separately from this bill, the Senate has introduced the 'Keep STEM Talent Act (S. 1233),' which provides a path to permanent residency for STEM master's and doctoral graduates, indicating bipartisan interest in attracting international talent in multiple ways.
◆ The Reality Reaching Korean International Students
“Behind every number, there is a name, and behind every name, there is a plan.”
South Korea is the third-largest source country for international students in the United States, according to the Open Doors report. Tens of thousands of Korean students pursue degrees at American universities each year, with a high proportion majoring in STEM fields such as engineering, computer science, and life sciences. It has become a common path for Korean international students to begin their careers at IT companies in Silicon Valley, financial firms in New York, or biotech research labs in Boston, leveraging OPT and STEM OPT after graduation. The OPT period holds significance beyond just employment opportunities. With the H-1B visa lottery weighted by wage level implemented in February of this year, the selection rate for junior employees with lower salaries has significantly decreased. In this context, the STEM OPT period, which can extend up to 36 months after graduation, serves as a temporal buffer, allowing for repeated attempts to secure an employment visa or for students to gain experience and increase their salary before reapplying.
If OPT is reduced or abolished, the ripple effect will not stop at the loss of job opportunities. If the prospect of working in the United States after graduation disappears, the number of international students choosing American universities from the outset will inevitably decrease. Chain reactions are unavoidable, from university tuition revenue and securing research personnel to revitalizing local economies. As of the 2024-2025 academic year, international students contributed $42.9 billion to the U.S. economy, supporting over 355,000 jobs. ICEF Monitor has analyzed that the future of the OPT program is the factor that will have the greatest long-term impact on study abroad demand, especially in tuition-sensitive markets. There are also reports of a trend among international students from Asian countries, including South Korea, to choose Canada, Australia, and the UK instead of the United States.
From the perspective of Korean international students, this bill is directly linked to the stability of their post-graduation career planning. If OPT is legally protected, they will be able to establish career plans without being influenced by the political decisions of the executive branch. The provision to maintain F-1 status while waiting for a green card is also a practical safeguard that reduces uncertainty in maintaining legal status in the current situation where visa quotas are tight. International students currently using OPT need to develop a habit of simultaneously monitoring the progress of this bill and the trends of DHS regulation changes, while also maintaining stable employment relationships.
Closing remarks
It is uncertain whether this bill will pass Congress. It is not easy for immigration-related bills to pass both chambers in the 119th Congress, and there is considerable political pressure to abolish OPT. Currently, it is pending in the House of Representatives and must undergo committee review, and it is unclear whether a companion bill will be introduced in the Senate. However, it is noteworthy that the bill was submitted as a bipartisan proposal by Democratic and Republican members, and that over 50 organizations in the education, industry, and immigration fields have united to declare their support.
Irrespective of the bill's fate, the DHS's re-evaluation of OPT regulations is likely to conclude within 2026. Two parallel movements are underway: one is Congress's attempt to elevate OPT to statutory law, and the other is the administration's review to curtail or fundamentally restructure OPT. The future plans of hundreds of thousands of international students will hinge on which of these two trajectories materializes first.
International students currently using or planning to use OPT should closely monitor both the progress of the legislation and the regulatory trends of DHS. If you have an employer, starting conversations about visa sponsorship or permanent residency procedures in advance is a realistic way to prepare. If you are within your OPT period, manage your Employment Authorization Document (EAD) renewal to avoid missing the deadline, and if you have not yet applied for STEM OPT, it is advisable to confirm your eligibility and whether your employer is registered with E-Verify. If there is one thing that 30 years of relying solely on regulations has taught us is that the stability of the system is not a given. Taking possible actions is always better than finding solutions after the system has changed.
Disclaimer: This column is for general information purposes only and is not legal advice for your specific case. You should always consult with an attorney who specializes in immigration law for your individual case.
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