The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) last week finalized a rule that eliminates "duration of status," the policy that has allowed international students and exchange visitors to remain in the United States for the length of their academic program.
The rule replaces that standard with a fixed four-year admission period, along with a new process for students who need additional time to complete their studies.
The rule takes effect Sept. 15, 60 days after publication. Students currently in the country may remain through the end date listed on their Form I-20 or for up to four additional years, whichever is shorter. Students who leave the United States after the rule takes effect and later reenter will have a new four-year period begin at that time.
The change reverses a policy in place since 1979, when the former Immigration and Naturalization Service began granting international students duration of status rather than requiring annual reapplication. DHS had proposed a similar rule during the first Trump administration, but that effort was withdrawn after litigation.
DHS said the change is intended to strengthen screening and monitoring of international students, framing it as a law enforcement and national security measure rather than a barrier to academic progress. ACE and more than 60 other higher education associations countered in comments submitted on the proposed rule that existing tools, including the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, already provide extensive oversight of international students, who are among the most closely tracked nonimmigrant populations in the country. The associations argued the new rule addresses a problem that data does not show exists, while creating new burdens for students and institutions.
The comments also disputed the workability of a four-year limit, citing federal data showing the average international undergraduate takes nearly five years to complete a bachelor's degree, while most doctoral programs and many medical residencies and fellowships take substantially longer. The associations raised particular concern about the rule's effect on joint degree programs, community college transfer pathways, and English language learners, who would face a 24-month cap under the rule.
"Nobody's arguing that DHS shouldn't be able to track who's here and why," said Sarah Spreitzer, vice president of ACE's government relations. "But a four-year clock doesn't match how degrees actually work, especially in fields like medicine or the sciences. We're going to see students and institutions scrambling to make this fit, and some of them just won't be able to."
The rule also restricts international students from changing their major or transferring institutions during their first year of study, and limits their ability to pursue a second degree at the same or a lower academic level while on an F visa.
Questions remain about how U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will manage the anticipated volume of extension requests generated by the new process, given the agency's existing case backlog. It is also unclear whether litigation seeking to block the rule will move forward before its September implementation date.