Yesterday’s announcement from the US government ending the long-standing duration of status visa rule was met with little surprise from educators across the US.
But that hasn’t dampened the chorus of criticism from the sector – with experts branding it an unnecessary change, once more raising alarm bells about Trump administration policies driving talent away from the US.
The new policy, set to take force on September 15, 2026, establishes fixed visa time limits for student and exchange visitors, who must apply for an extension to stay in the US for more than four years.
The grace period for F-1 students will be halved from 60 to 30 days, and stricter limitations will apply to program and institution transfers.
DHS secretary Markwayne Mullin said in a statement that the old policy of duration of status “compromised national security and created an environment ripe for immigration fraud” by allowing students to stay in the US indefinitely, without any interaction with immigration officials.
But educators dispute this claim, arguing that international students are the most tracked nonimmigrant group in the country through SEVIS – a digital records system run by the government.
“The government is looking for a problem that doesn’t exist,” NAFSA CEO Fanta Aw, explaining that SEVIS, which was established in the wake of 9/11, already gave them the levers to monitor international students.
Presidents’ Alliance deputy director of federal policy Zuzana Cepla Wootson called the action “unnecessary and duplicative” in how it shifts decisions about academic progress from colleges and universities to the federal government.
Aw said she was particularly concerned about doctoral students on PhD courses that are invariably longer than four years in the US, meaning “every single PhD student will have to go through an extension”.
“The academic program indicates what is a normal length of study, not only for international students but for every student on the program.
“For the government to come up with an arbitrary, finite date for completion… makes zero sense,” she said.
What’s more, the average undergraduate student in the US takes longer than four years to complete their bachelor’s degree, and those pursuing optional practical training (OPT) work opportunities post-graduation will require an extension of stay.
AIEA CEO Clare Overmann highlighted the challenging timing of the rule taking effect, with campuses already in session by mid-September, following the largest annal enrolment of international students for the fall cycle.
“Certainly, this will be a difficult and time-consuming transition, but we will adapt and adjust,” said Overmann, adding that most campuses have been preparing for the change.
Nevertheless, many fear that uncertainty and confusion about the rule will further dampen the appeal of the US among prospective international students.
“The rule imposes unnecessary burdens on international students and scholars, campuses, employers and federal agencies alike,” said Wootson, calling it a “counterproductive” move that would ultimately harm the US economy.
Port-of-entry errors aren’t rare even for visa categories that have worked the same way for decades
Diego Menendez, Alma Immigration
On technicality that could get “lost in translation” is how the rule impacts students already in the US and in D/S status before September 15, said senior immigration attorney Diego Menendez of Alma Immigration.
Those individuals will be in status either up until their existing program end date or four years from September 15 – whichever is later – plus a 60-day grace period for F-1s, not he shorter 30-day period that applies going forward.
Beyond confusion on campuses, Menendez said he was “very concerned” about inconsistencies in how the regulations are applied across more than 300 US ports of entry by Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) officials.
He said CBP officers would now have to make “meaningfully more complex judgement calls, rolled out with a short training window, across a large number of entry points staffed by officers with varying levels of familiarity with student visa nuances”.
“Port-of-entry errors aren’t rare even for visa categories that have worked the same way for decades.
“I’d bet on a bureaucratic headache in the short to medium term, at least until officers are well versed in the changes,” he said, advising students to promptly check their records upon each re-entry to flag any discrepancies.
Meanwhile, Aw raised concerns about the new extension requirements exacerbating “massive backlogs”, calling for clarity from government on the earliest time students can apply for an extension and what it can guarantee in terms of processing times.
That said, Menendez confirmed that filing for an extension on time would put students in a ‘period of authorised stay’. “So a slow queue alone won’t push you into unlawful presence. Miss the deadline or get denied, though, and there’s no grace period at all.”
For institutions already under financial strain, the staffing and resources required to meet the additional burden will be huge, with Aw concerned about retention of staff within the field.
“Heads have been spinning for the last two years. You already have a field that’s been overburdened in inordinate ways, and the tsunami just keeps coming,” she said.
More broadly, critics argue the rule will accelerate the trend of declining international enrolments, with the number of F-1 visas issued from May to August falling 36% last year and six in ten institutions seeing a drop in applications for 2026/27.
“Students have choices, and if they aren’t confident they can complete their education here without unnecessary uncertainty and administrative hurdles, they will increasingly choose other countries,” said Wootson.
She highlighted “significant consequences” of further declines for domestic students and US competitiveness, emphasising that one in four billion-dollar US startup is founded by a former international student.
