Retaining International Student Graduates
5 Policy Proposals for Congress

1| Establish direct pathways to permanent residency

International student graduates of U.S. colleges and universities should have a direct pathway to obtain permanent residency (a green card).

Congress should establish a dedicated green card pathway on the basis of U.S. education that isn’t tied to sponsorship by an individual’s employer or family.² This would allow graduates to remain in the U.S. after graduation, which is especially important for individuals with degrees in critical fields like STEM disciplines and healthcare.³

Congress could also establish a direct pathway by exempting certain international graduates from numerical limits on employment-based green cards, thereby expanding access to existing immigration avenues. Early language that was ultimately dropped from the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act would have exempted STEM PhD holders from those numerical limits, ensuring that graduates would be able to begin work immediately after graduating and not get stuck in backlogs. This language was ultimately dropped before the bill reached the President’s desk, but can and should be resurrected by leaders in Congress to ensure the full success of these large investments in our national competitiveness and security.

Similarly, the Department of Labor should finalize the process begun in 2024 to modernize the Schedule A list of occupations that are pre-certified for employment-based immigration programs, allowing for a streamlined and expedited sponsorship process in sectors facing persistent talent shortages, like artificial intelligence.

2| Expand post-graduation work opportunities and formalize OPT

In addition to creating a direct pathway to permanent status, Congress should strengthen post-graduation work opportunities, including establishing a true temporary post-graduation work visa for international student graduates.⁴

As our analysis shows, not all international graduates will want to stay in the U.S. permanently, and an increasing share are anticipating shorter stays. A temporary work visa would allow them to contribute their skills after they graduate, and could provide a bridge to permanent status should they change their minds and seek to stay using existing immigration pathways. A dedicated post-graduation visa would also relieve pressure on the heavily oversubscribed H-1B visa program, where nearly half of all registrants in the annual lottery hold an advanced degree from a U.S. college or university.

While there is currently no work visa specifically for international graduates, there are underutilized alternatives to the H-1B that could be promising for international graduates. These include the O-1 “extraordinary ability” visa and the J-1 “exchange visitor” program, which is used by postgraduate researchers and physicians, among others. Increasing participation in these programs, through employer education and clarified guidance and support from DHS, could boost retention and provide alternatives to H-1B.

At the same time, Optional Practical Training (OPT), which is directly tied to a student’s course of study and is a valuable part of their educational experience, cannot be replaced by a work visa and must still be protected and fortified. Congress should instead pass legislation to authorize the OPT program formally, and the administration should do whatever is possible to strengthen it in the meantime, including ensuring the list of degree fields eligible for the STEM extension is updated regularly.⁵ This would affirm OPT’s legality and bolster it against spurious legal challenges.

3| Exempt advanced degree holders from H-1B caps

Until Congress establishes a post-graduation work visa, it should ensure that international student graduates who have earned advanced degrees from U.S. colleges and universities have full access to the H-1B visa program by exempting them from annual numerical caps.

Congress has authorized the issuance of 65,000 new H-1B visas each year; Congress has also mandated that an additional 20,000 H-1B visas be set aside for workers with advanced degrees from U.S. colleges or universities. However, the number of applicants who qualify for this exemption has surpassed 100,000 in recent years, nearly half of H-1B visa-seekers each year and greater than the entire annual 85,000 H-1B visa cap.

The cap restrictions guarantee that significant numbers of U.S.-educated international graduates will be denied a chance even to apply for a visa. Exempting advanced degree holders from these caps would help ensure that all graduates can access the program.

The H-1B visa already has strict qualifications; workers must be sponsored by a qualifying employer with a bona fide job offer in hand, and the sponsoring employer pays significant fees and must secure approval from the Department of Labor for the offered wage and working conditions. With these protections in place, and persistent job shortages in these key industries, there is no reason to artificially limit the number of graduates who are able to remain and work in the U.S.

4| Permit ‘dual-intent’ for student visas

Congress should pass legislation designating F-1 student visas as “dual-intent,” similar to H-1B visas, allowing students to enter on a temporary student visa even if they plan to remain in the U.S. and seek permanent residency in the future.

Current immigration law prohibits international students from being granted a visa if they demonstrate “immigrant intent.” This means that if an immigration officer believes the student intends to remain in the country after their visa expires, they have the latitude to deny the student an F-1 visa. Theoretically, this ensures that students are only being admitted for the purpose of their visa, which is to study temporarily; however, this policy directly undermines the goal of retaining these students after graduation. It’s silly to pretend that students don’t want to stay, or that we don’t want and need them to.

Even with dual intent, graduates would still have to qualify for an immigration avenue to stay and work after finishing their studies; this policy change would simply acknowledge the reality that an incoming international student might reasonably want to stay longer than the time of their study, and would facilitate their transition to other immigration categories.Congress should pass legislation designating student visas (e.g. F-1) as “dual-intent,” similar to H-1B visas, allowing students to enter on a student visa even if they plan on remaining in the country after graduation.

Current immigration law prohibits international students from being granted a visa if they believe they demonstrate “immigration intent,” meaning that immigration officers are supposed to deny a prospective student their visa if they believe the student is intending to remain in the country after their visa expires upon the completion of their studies. Theoretically, this ensures that students are only being admitted for the purpose of their visa, which is to study; however, this policy directly undermines the goal of retaining these students after graduation. It’s silly to pretend that students don’t want to stay, or that we don’t want and need them to.

Even with dual intent, graduates would still have to qualify for an immigration avenue to stay and work after finishing their studies; this policy change would simply acknowledge the reality that an incoming international student might reasonably want to stay longer than the time of their study, and would facilitate their transition to other immigration categories.

5| Create an entrepreneur visa and expand existing entrepreneur parole

A startup visa would give aspiring entrepreneurs a clear pathway to remain in the U.S. so that they can start companies, contribute to the economy, drive innovation, and create jobs for Americans. This is particularly important in regions of the country struggling with slow or decliningeconomic and demographic growth. Congress could include requirements for entrepreneurs to demonstrate the growth and job creation potential of their venture.

In the meantime, the administration should build on the existing Entrepreneur Parole Program by allowing more than three entrepreneurs per start-up entity and allowing individuals to work for other companies and individuals while they embark on their own start-up venture, for example.⁶

Many international graduates go on to start their own companies in the United States. In fact, analysis from the National Foundation for American Policy shows that a quarter of billion-dollar startups were founded by international graduates of U.S. colleges and universities. Unfortunately, the lack of a dedicated immigration pathway for entrepreneurs⁷ makes this a difficult process with many barriers, holding back our economic growth and preventing the creation of new jobs.