Groups Sue DHS Over Rule That Would Cap F-1 Status at 4 Years

What the Rule Would Change

For more than four decades, F-1 students (and J exchange visitors) have been admitted on "duration of status" — meaning they can stay as long as they are actively enrolled in their program. No fixed expiration date, no countdown clock.

The final rule challenged in this lawsuit would scrap that system entirely. According to the complaint filed by the plaintiffs, the key changes include:

• Hard four-year cap: F, J, and I nonimmigrants would be admitted for a maximum of four years, regardless of how long their degree program takes.
• Mandatory extension requests: Students who need more time to finish their degree would have to apply for a discretionary extension from USCIS — with no guarantee of approval.
• Graduate students locked in: The rule would prohibit graduate students from changing their academic program after admission.
• No second degrees at the same level: All students would be barred from pursuing a degree at the same or lower educational level than one they have already completed.
• Tighter transfer rules: Undergraduates would face new restrictions on transferring between schools or changing programs.
• Shorter grace period: The post-completion grace period for F-1 students — the window to depart, change status, or prepare after finishing a degree — would be cut from 60 days to 30 days.

Why Plaintiffs Say It's Unlawful

The complaint argues that the rule is arbitrary, inflexible, and will cause serious harm to students, universities, and the U.S. economy. Plaintiffs note that international students contribute more than $42 billion annually to the U.S. economy and support approximately 360,000 American jobs. The lawsuit names DHS, ICE, Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin, and Acting ICE Director David Venturella as defendants.

The plaintiffs contend that forcing students to apply for extensions from an already overwhelmed federal bureaucracy creates massive uncertainty — a student mid-dissertation or mid-medical residency could find themselves without valid status through no fault of their own.

What Isn't Clear Yet

The complaint document does not specify when the final rule takes effect. It is also not yet known whether a court has issued a temporary restraining order or injunction pausing the rule while litigation proceeds. Those details had not been reported at the time of this article's publication.