United States | DHS rule update: Final rule to establish fixed admission periods for F/J/I visas pending review

The Department of Homeland Security recently submitted 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,” for regulatory review by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

Key takeaways:

NPRM was first published in August 2025. As previously reported, DHS published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in the Federal Register on Aug. 28, 2025, that would change the “duration of status” admission policy for F, J and most I nonimmigrant visa holders to a fixed period. Affected individuals would receive a defined expiration date for their stay rather than being admitted for the duration of their program or activity.

Rule rationale. As part of its rationale for the proposed rule, DHS said, “Replacing admissions for [duration of status] with admissions for a fixed time period of authorized stay is consistent with most other nonimmigrant classifications, would provide additional protections and oversight of these nonimmigrant classifications and would allow DHS to better evaluate whether these nonimmigrants are maintaining status while temporarily in the United States.”

Public comment period closed. The public was invited to comment through Sept. 29, 2025. Approximately 22,000 public comments were received.

Final rule pending OMB review. The final rule is pending OMB review. After OMB completes its review, the rule is expected to be posted for public inspection and then published in the Federal Register with an effective date approximately 30 to 60 days later.

Additional information: Because the final regulatory text has not yet been published, the full scope of these changes remains uncertain. BAL will continue to monitor the progress of this regulation and provide updates.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

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