The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has announced a proposed rule under which schools applying for the Optional Practical Training program must pay a fee of $70,000 per person, and $30,000 to extend the program, in an effort to address fraud and abuse.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security issued a reminder to foreign students, urging them to ensure they do not engage in foreign agent activities that legally require registration, otherwise they will lose their student status and face deportation.
On September 1, 2026, the Chinese Embassy in Russia issued a safety alert for studying in Russia, unusually including a warning about conscription, stressing that foreign students are not related to Russian military service and requiring them to contact the embassy or consulate immediately upon receiving a conscription notice.
On June 16, 2026, human rights activist Zhou Fengsuo publicly disclosed that Wang Yiyan, a PhD student at the University of Colorado in the US who researches internet freedom, had been secretly arrested by the Chinese Communist Party and forcibly disappeared for two years after returning to China.