- A DHS/SEVP memo dated August 24, 2026 narrowed Curricular Practical Training for international students.
- Schools may lose certification if CPT is not an integral part of curriculum for all students.
- OPT remains separate, while a new admission rule starts September 15, 2026 for many visa holders.
A DHS/SEVP memo dated August 24, 2026 tightened Curricular Practical Training rules for international students, telling schools the work must be an “integral part of an established curriculum” and warning they could lose certification to enroll foreign students if they do not comply. The bar moved higher.
The memo narrows CPT in practice by drawing a line around internships that count for everyone in a program. Under the guidance, practical training only qualifies when it is required for all students, not when a school offers it as an elective or folds it into a credit-bearing option. Optional placements are now exposed.
Free toolOPT Timeline Calculator Online
The department also told schools to stop using CPT as a workaround for off-campus jobs. DHS said, “Nothing about these regulations has changed,” signaling stricter enforcement of the existing rule rather than a rewrite. Enforcement, not rewrite.
The memo came from the Student and Exchange Visitor Program, which sits inside U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement under the Department of Homeland Security. Harvard International Office moved quickly after that, saying on September 3, 2026 it would no longer authorize CPT except where the work is a formal graduation requirement. Colleges noticed.
Optional Practical Training (OPT) stays separate. The current CPT crackdown does not change that program, and students can still apply for OPT through the federal government. The lanes stay separate.
Mandatory internships now have the clearest path
The practical line is simple. If an internship is built into the degree for every student, the school can still treat it as CPT. If the internship is only attached to an elective, a credit-bearing course, or a choice made by some students, the new reading gives schools far less room. That's the pressure point.
That has already pushed some administrators to narrow approvals. Harvard's action on September 3 shows how quickly schools are adjusting when they read the memo as a hard stop on optional training arrangements. The office drew a hard line.
A separate admission rule starts September 15
A different DHS rule published on July 17, 2026 will change the general admission period for many F, J, and I visa holders beginning September 15, 2026. That rule is separate from the internship guidance, but it lands soon. The calendar is crowded.
