Overview

• The Department of Homeland Security published a proposed rule to replace open-ended stays for F, J and I visas with fixed admission periods, reviving a 2020 plan later withdrawn by the Biden administration.
• Most student and exchange visitors would be capped at four years, while media visas would be limited to 240 days with a shorter 90-day limit for certain Chinese passport holders; all categories could seek extensions.
• Operational changes include cutting the F-1 post-completion grace period from 60 to 30 days, restricting some graduate-level program changes, and requiring extensions or status changes to remain beyond the fixed term.
• DHS says fixed terms would improve oversight given the scale of these populations, citing about 1.6 million F-visa students, roughly 355,000 exchange visitors and around 13,000 media visa holders in 2024.
• Education groups that opposed the earlier version, including NAFSA, are expected to challenge the move, and China’s ambassador cautioned against erecting barriers to people-to-people exchanges.