DHS Publishes New Rule Restricting F-1 Student and J-1 Exchange Visitor Programs
On July 17, 2026, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), through U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), published a final rule, "Establishing a Fixed Time Period of Admission and an Extension of Stay Procedure for Nonimmigrant Academic Students, Exchange Visitors, and Representatives of Foreign Information Media." The rule eliminates the longstanding duration of status (“D/S”) framework for F students and J exchange visitors, as well as I representatives of foreign information media, and replaces it with fixed periods of admission and a formal extension of stay process administered by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). The rule takes effect on September 15, 2026.
Of equal significance are a series of new substantive restrictions governing the manner in which F-1 students may move between schools, programs, and educational levels. Together with the fixed admission periods, these restrictions represent the most consequential change to the F-1 category in several decades.
Background
For more than three decades, F-1 students and J-1 exchange visitors have generally been admitted for duration of status, meaning that they were authorized to remain in the United States for as long as they complied with the terms of their status, rather than until a fixed expiration date on the Form I-94, as is the case for most other nonimmigrant classifications. Oversight of continued eligibility rested largely with designated school officials (DSOs) rather than with the federal government.
A central objective of the new rule is to prevent nonimmigrants from remaining in the United States indefinitely under the F-1 category. DHS has expressed the concern that, under the existing framework, a student may extend a stay almost without limit by moving from one school or program to another, or by repeatedly extending a program end date, with those determinations made by DSOs and without USCIS review or approval. In the preamble to the rule, DHS cites "pay-to-stay" fraud prosecutions, as well as students who remained in F-1 status for extraordinarily long periods, including one individual enrolled at a dance school from 1991 to 2021 in a program of a normal length of five years. The fixed admission period, the new extension of stay requirement, and the restrictions on transfers and changes of educational level described below are each directed at that concern.
Key Changes
Fixed admission periods. F and J nonimmigrants will be admitted for the length of their program of study or exchange program, not to exceed four years. The period is measured from the program start date reflected on the Form I-20 or Form DS-2019, rather than from the date of entry. The 30-day pre-arrival window and the departure grace period do not count toward the four-year maximum. Representatives of foreign information media in I status are subject to a separate and considerably shorter fixed period.
Shortened grace period. The post-completion departure grace period for F-1 students is reduced from 60 days to 30 days. A student who completes or ceases a course of study or training must depart, or timely act to maintain or change status, within that period.
New extension of stay process. A student requiring additional time must file Form I-539 with USCIS before the authorized period of stay expires, and biometrics may be required. This represents the core structural shift effected by the rule: authority to grant additional time moves from the DSO to USCIS. An F-1 student who timely files the extension request may continue to pursue a full course of study while the application remains pending. However, an I-539 filed to pursue a new program (e.g., day-one CPT at a new university) must be approved before the student can start the new program.
Narrowed grounds for extension. An F-1 student who is unable to complete his or her degree program by the conclusion of the authorized period of admission must generally have continuously maintained status and must demonstrate a compelling academic reason, a documented medical illness or condition, or circumstances beyond the student's control. Academic probation, suspension, and repeated inability to complete a program are generally not acceptable bases for an extension.
First academic year lock-in. An F-1 student must generally complete the first academic year at the school that issued the initial Form I-20 before transferring to another school, absent a qualifying Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) exception. This provision is directed at the practice of enrolling at one school and transferring elsewhere shortly thereafter.
No transfers for graduate students. Students at the graduate level are prohibited from transferring schools at any point during their program, absent a qualifying SEVP exception for extenuating circumstances. A graduate student who wishes to move institutions will accordingly face a materially more difficult path than under prior practice.
No change of educational objective for graduate students. Graduate-level students are likewise prohibited from changing their educational objective at any point during their program. A student admitted to pursue one course of graduate study may not redirect to another.
"Upward only" progression between levels. Of particular importance, a student who completes one educational level may only begin a new program at a higher educational level. A student concluding a bachelor's degree may proceed to a master's or a doctorate, but may not enroll in a new program at the same or a lower level. This provision closes what DHS regards as the most common route to open-ended stays in F-1 status.
24-month cap on language training. Study in a language training program is capped at an aggregate 24 months, inclusive of breaks and annual vacation, without regard to the number of programs or schools involved.
Cap-gap and change of status. Existing H-1B cap-gap protections are not modified by the rule. The rule does, however, codify that a pending change of status application is deemed abandoned if the applicant departs the United States while the application remains pending, which reflects existing USCIS policy.
Key Transition Provisions
DHS has provided a 60-day implementation window, together with transition rules for individuals already present in the United States:
F and J nonimmigrants in duration of status as of September 15, 2026 may remain until the later of the program end date on the Form I-20 or DS-2019 in effect on that date or, where applicable, the expiration date of an OPT Employment Authorization Document. In either case, their stay may not exceed four years from the effective date of the Rule, plus the grace period in effect before the effective date. F-1 students in this situation will accordingly retain a 60-day grace period.
An F-1 or J-1 nonimmigrant who departs the United States and is readmitted after the effective date will be subject to all the provisions of the new rule and will receive a new Form I-94 bearing a fixed admission date. F-1 students who travel internationally and reenter after the effective date will also be subject to the new, shorter 30-day grace period.
F-1 students who timely file Form I-765 for post-completion OPT or STEM OPT on or before March 18, 2027 are not required to file a separate Form I-539 extension of stay application for the requested OPT or STEM OPT period. This relief is forfeited if the student departs and is readmitted with a fixed admission period before filing.
DHS has reserved the discretion to extend, in six-month increments and by publication of notice in the Federal Register, the period during which a Form I-539 extension of stay application is not required.
Unlawful Presence Risk During the Transition Period
Under duration of status, unlawful presence generally did not begin to accrue unless and until USCIS or an immigration judge made a formal finding that the nonimmigrant had violated status, with the result that a technical status problem rarely produced a bar to readmission for F-1s and J-1s. Once an F-1 nonimmigrant holds a Form I-94 bearing a date certain, that protection is no longer available: unlawful presence begins to accrue automatically on the day following expiration of the authorized period, without notice and without adjudication, unless a timely filed extension of stay or change of status has been submitted. Accrual of more than 180 days of unlawful presence triggers a three-year bar on readmission upon departure, and accrual of more than one year triggers a ten-year bar. A timely filed extension of stay application places the individual in a period of authorized stay and tolls accrual while the application remains pending.
The transition period presents the greatest risk of inadvertent accrual of unlawful presence. Individuals in duration of status on September 15, 2026 will not receive an updated Form I-94 to reflect that their lawful presence has been converted to a fixed-date expiration. The document in hand will continue to reflect "D/S" notwithstanding that the authorized period of stay is now bounded by an end date calculated by reference to Form I-20 or the Employment Authorization Document. Compounding this difficulty, a single trip abroad converts the individual to the fixed-date framework upon reentry, and the transition-period OPT filing relief (which would avoid the need to file a separate Form I-539) is forfeited where travel precedes the filing.
Impact on Day-One CPT Programs
Although DHS states in the preamble to the rule that it does not prohibit or eliminate so-called "day-one" curricular practical training (CPT), and that the rule makes no substantive change to the CPT framework, several provisions may nonetheless affect the viability of this option once the rule takes effect.
CPT work authorization requires that the student be enrolled on a full-time basis, and the authorization is predicated on an internship-type arrangement between the school and the employer. For most programs, a student may not apply for CPT until they have been enrolled for at least one academic year, subject to an exception where a graduate program requires immediate participation. A limited number of institutions specialize in offering programs that permit students to work on a full-time basis for the entire duration of the degree program, commencing on the first day of enrollment, an arrangement commonly described as day-one CPT.
A typical day-one CPT arrangement involves an individual who completed a U.S. master's degree, exhausted OPT work authorization, was not selected in the H-1B lottery, and enrolled in a second master's program to maintain work authorization. The new "upward only" progression requirement in the Final Rule forecloses precisely that step: a student completing a program at one educational level may only begin a new program at a higher level, and a master's-to-master's move is therefore no longer available. The remaining option in F-1 status is a bona fide move up to a doctoral-level program, which carries a materially heavier academic burden.
The "upward only" requirement appears to operate prospectively, with programs completed before the effective date not counted, such that an employee who completed a master's degree before September 15, 2026 may retain greater flexibility than one who completes a degree thereafter. The precise scope of that carve-out should be confirmed on a case-by-case basis.
Of equal importance, second-degree enrollments motivated by CPT work authorization already attract USCIS scrutiny at the point at which the individual seeks to change to H-1B status. The rule introduces an earlier point of review as well. The day-one CPT scenario involves enrollment in a new program at a new institution, typically at a point at which the student's authorized period of admission has expired or is about to expire following the conclusion of practical training. Unlike a traditional grant of CPT, in which a continuing student obtains authorization from the DSO at his or her current institution within an existing period of admission, the student in this scenario must first obtain an extension of stay from USCIS in order to remain in the United States and commence the new program. CPT cannot begin until that application is approved, and USCIS may deny the application where it concludes that the request is motivated solely by a desire to secure work authorization rather than to pursue a course of study. In the alternative, the student may depart the United States and seek readmission at a port of entry with the new Form I-20, in which case the same assessment is made by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
What This Means for Our Clients
We will assist our clients in reviewing the records of employees in F-1 status, including those on OPT and STEM OPT, and in J-1 exchange visitor status, including trainees, interns, specialists, and research scholars, in order to help ensure an orderly transition from duration of status to fixed-date Form I-94 validity periods. Where continued work authorization and maintenance of status depend upon a timely filed extension of stay, filings should be prepared well in advance of expiration.
For sponsored employees still completing degrees, including those in curricular practical training programs, and for employees who plan to enroll in new F-1 or J-1 programs, the new restrictions warrant particular attention. An employee who anticipates requiring more than four years to complete a program, who is considering a change of program or institution, or who expects to pursue a further degree at the same educational level should discuss the implications before taking any step, as certain options may no longer be available once the final rule takes effect.
Employers should also counsel employees in F-1 and J-1 status regarding the potential consequences of international travel, and should encourage them to notify our office if they intend to depart the United States and seek readmission after the effective date of the final rule. Employees in F-1 or J-1 status may wish to consider adjusting travel plans so as to return to the United States before the effective date, in order to avoid, where applicable, the necessity of filing a Form I-539 extension of stay application.
Employees in F-1 status who are eligible to file for OPT or STEM OPT work authorization should consider filing on or before March 18, 2027 in order to take advantage of the transition provision described above and avoid the need to file a separate Form I-539.
Because the rule is classified as a major rule, it remains subject to congressional review, and additional guidance on implementation from USCIS, ICE, SEVP, and the Department of State is anticipated in advance of the effective date. Legal challenges are also possible. We nonetheless recommend that clients begin preparing now rather than awaiting further developments, as recalculating admission periods and preparing extension of stay filings will require lead time.
We will provide more information as it becomes available.