US DHS Advances H-1B and OPT Fee Plans, With Indians Holding 71% of 2024 Approvals
Updated
Updated · India Today · Aug 24
US DHS Advances H-1B and OPT Fee Plans, With Indians Holding 71% of 2024 Approvals
3 articles · Updated · India Today · Aug 24
Summary
August 20-19 filings show DHS sent a proposed OPT fee rule to the Office of Management and Budget and won clearance for a separate H-1B fee proposal, moving both toward formal rulemaking.
No fee amounts are public, but Fragomen said DHS could propose an OPT charge as high as $100,000, far above the current $470 online or $520 paper filing fee for work authorization.
Indian students and tech workers face the biggest exposure because 71% of fiscal 2024 approved H-1B petitions were for people born in India, and many use the F-1-to-OPT-to-H-1B pathway.
The H-1B proposal follows a failed 2025 policy that imposed a $100,000 payment on some new petitions before a federal court vacated it in June and an appeals court refused to pause that ruling in July.