We believe more needs to be done to educate the general public, business, chambers of commerce, economic development leaders, policymakers and others about the economic contributions of international students and J-exchange visitors and the economic costs of the proposed Duration of Status rule.
On August 28, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a proposed rule that would force the vast majority of international students and J-visa exchange visitors to file Extension of Stay (EOS) applications which require filing fees, biometric data, possible interviews and maybe even require international students and scholars to hire legal representation. It promises endless delays, vast confusion, massive red tape and other burdens. The proposed rule projects nearly $400 million in out-of-pocket costs annually for federal administrators, international students, J-visa exchange visitors and foreign media to comply.
The 1.1 million international students and 300,000 J-visa exchange visitors are critically important to the American economy. International students alone are estimated to spend $43.8 billion annually in the U.S., providing significant tuition dollars, in addition to rent, groceries, goods and services. International students are a major source of high-skilled talent to the U.S. economy and approximately 50% of all the graduate students in critical STEM fields studying at U.S. colleges and universities are international students. Over 250,000 international students are currently working in the U.S. through the OPT program, filling critical talent gaps in the U.S. economy.
This proposed rule will make the U.S. a far less attractive place for international students and scholars to study and work and greatly complicates the ability of employers to utilize international student talent to fill critical STEM talent gaps. In short, if the rule were to be implemented, the proposed rule would hurt the U.S. economy and economic growth, hurt American companies, make America less competitive, and cost jobs.
The Duration of Status Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) was posted for public inspection on August 28, 2025, and the public is encouraged to submit their opinions on this rule by Monday, September 29, 2025.
Understanding the Rule
The proposed rule will greatly increase the administrative burdens and paperwork of the vast majority of international students and J-1 visa exchange visitors.
For the last three decades international students and scholars to the U.S. have been allowed to keep their status so long as they were enrolled full-time in their program or working after graduation as part of their Optional Practical Training (OPT). The proposed rule would change that practice limiting the “Duration of Status” (D/S) of international students, J-visa exchange visitors and international media to four years, requiring these visa holders to file formal Extension of Stay (EOS) applications with the federal government to stay beyond the cap. This will create endless delays, vast confusion, massive red tape, and other burdens. The proposed rule also will impose new limits on changing academic programs.Of note:
The proposed rule cuts the F-1 grace period in half, from 60 to 30 days. Under existing regulations, F-1 students are provided 60 days following the completion of their studies and any practical training to prepare for departure from the United States. The proposed rule would reduce this post-completion "grace" period to 30 days, the same post-completion period that J exchange visitors and M-1 students currently have. International students would have less time to file extensions after completing their studies or training, prepare for departure, or change status increasing pressure on both students and university advisers.
The four-year cap is too short for most international students. Research suggests that only 56% of international students (and only 44% of domestic students) receive their bachelor’s degree in four years. International students pursuing a doctoral (Ph.D.) degree average 5.8 years and those seeking a master and Ph.D. average 7.5 years, well beyond the four-year cap. J-1 research scholars are permitted by existing law to stay up to 5 years, also exceeding the four-year proposed cap. The proposed rule also seeks to impose a two-year cap on English Language Learners (ELL) and associate degree candidates and any effort by these students to transfer to a four-year program or to move from an ELL program to a community college will trigger the EOS provisions. Similarly, any international student originally enrolled in a community college program will trigger the EOS provisions if they seek to transfer to a four-year degree.
Negative impact of OPT program: currently international students in STEM degree fields are allowed to work for three full years after their graduation in their field of study to gain practical experience. The rule’s four-year cap basically necessitates that these STEM workers will need to pursue an EOS application, a major challenge. The U.S. economy has greatly benefitted from the OPT STEM extension, originally created by President Bush to help address the critical STEM talent shortage in the private sector. Today 250,000 international students are working after graduation through the OPT program. As noted, the EOS application requires additional filing fees, biometric data, possible interviews and maybe even require hiring legal representation. It promises endless delays, vast confusion, massive red tape and other burdens. Employers seeking to hire OPT students will now have their employment offers thrown into a mass of confusion, delay, red tape and uncertainty.
NAFSA: Association of International Educators has done a good job analyzing the details of the proposed rule, which is over 150 pages and includes detailed aspects of immigration law, enabling interested persons to research specific provisions of the proposed changes.
Talking points on the Duration of Status issue
Brief Overview
On August 28, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security published a proposed Duration of Status rule changing the ways in which international students are monitored once they enroll in U.S. colleges and universities. The proposed rule alters practices that have been in place for more than 40 years and will create delays, vast confusion, massive red tape and other burdens for the majority of international students, especially those seeking to work in the U.S. on their student visas after graduation and those pursuing PhDs. This proposed Duration of Status rule will make pursuing a degree in the U.S. much more difficult and less attractive for international students and is bound to plummet the number of international students in the U.S. With more than 1.1 million international students who spend $43.8 billion annually in the U.S., as well as over 400,000 Optional Practical Training international student workers in the U.S. economy, this rule would have devastating economic consequences. It will decrease an immediate supply of critical STEM talent, reduce the number of high-tech startups launched by international students, slow patent production from America’s research universities and deprive colleges and universities of much-needed tuition revenue, triggering either tuition increases on domestic students or decrease in educational offerings. Historically, federal regulations governing international education have only attracted attention from leaders in higher education. The Duration of Status proposed rule, however, is one of several attacks on international students who have played an increasingly critical role in the American economy. It is important for business, industry and economic development leaders to weigh in on these issues in order to protect the supply of critical talent needed for the U.S. economy, especially in STEM fields.
Impacts to U.S. Employers
The proposed rule seems particularly harmful to U.S. employers who employ more than 400,000 international students on the Optional Practical Training (OPT) portion of their student visa. The rule proposes a four-year cap before international students will need to apply for extension of say, requiring filing fees, biometric data, interviews, lawyers, delays and red tape. These sorts of delays will make hiring international students on OPT an uncertain and risky venture, exactly the opposite of what employers need in developing strategies to fill critical talent gaps. The rule will greatly deter utilization of the STEM extension of the OPT that has fueled growth in OPT employment and will make pursuing PhDs more difficulty. The rule will decrease international student enrollment, the majority of whom major in STEM fields and who make up significant majorities of the graduate students in computer science, engineering, artificial intelligence, mathematics, as well as physical and life sciences—all fields critical to America’s economic future.
Impacts on the U.S. Economy
International students spent $43.8 billion annually in the U.S., making it the seventh largest service export product. Those expenditures don’t just hurt higher education, but they impact retail business, landlords, tourism, hospitality and other business sectors in the university towns and communities across the nation. Longer-term economic impacts will be felt through the loss of innovation (patents being generated by colleges and universities), decrease in future startups, loss of high-skilled STEM workers available for higher and loss of future exports and investments from global partners who have built ties to the U.S. while studying as international students here.
Decreasing International Student Enrollment and Harming Higher Education
International students have played a critical role in filling declining enrollment that U.S. colleges and universities have experienced and will continue to experience as a result of declining U.S. birth rates. These rules will make studying in the U.S. more costly and chaotic and are bound to serve as a disincentive for future international students to consider studying here. Estimates suggest that international students comprise between 12 and 30 percent of all tuition dollars at America’s public universities, a much-needed supply of revenue given declining public investment from state budgets and declining enrollment.
Hampering U.S. Innovation
International students have played a critical role in U.S. innovation. Over 50 percent of international students major in a STEM discipline, and international students comprise over 55 percent of all the graduate students in America in electrical engineering, computer science, industrial and manufacturing engineering, statistics, economics, civil engineering, mechanical engineering, agricultural economics, and mathematics and applied math. The students are a critical component of the future STEM workforce to advance innovation within American companies and industry. International students and faculty are critical to the innovation that occurs with America’s research universities. It is estimated that 75 percent of the patents awarded to the nation’s top ten patent-producing research universities had an international student, faculty or researcher among the team filing the patent. International student graduates go on to launch some of the most important and valuable startup companies in the U.S., having founded or co-founded approximately 25 percent of all U.S. unicorns (143 of the 582 companies), startup companies backed by venture capital with market valuations in excess of $1 billion. They also contribute to a disproportionate number of U.S.-won Nobel Prizes in science.
Creating a Massive Federal Bureaucracy
The federal rules governing international students’ Duration of Status were changed back in 1979 because of the enormous burden that the prior system placed on the federal government. The proposed rules likely will trigger an extension of stay application for more than half of all the international students studying in the U.S., including any anyone seeking to utilize the OPT STEM extension program (unless they are in a one-year degree program), anyone pursuing a PhD requiring longer than four years, bachelor’s candidate requiring more than four years, any associates degree or English language program candidate requiring more than two years, anyone transferring between majors or universities, anyone pursuing a master’s degree followed by a PhD. DHS estimates that it will cost the federal government over $300 million per year to administer these changes or more than $3 billion over the next decade. That is a significant expansion of federal bureaucracy to pore over biometric data, read applications, conduct interviews and create and file numerous government forms. A fixed expiration date policy will create a tremendous administrative burden for the already-strapped USCIS. There is no reason to believe USCIS will be able to successfully manage the additional filings the elimination of Duration of Status would generate. For example, as of August 26, 2025, the processing time for an extension of status request at USCIS’ California Service Center is 7.5 months while there is a 7 month long wait at the Nebraska Service Center.
The Rule Will Accomplish Little
International students and exchange visitors are already rigorously tracked in the SEVIS database and are the most closely monitored nonimmigrants in the country. SEVIS is continuously updated by DHS agencies and U.S. colleges and universities to include dates of entry, periods of authorized study, OPT, and other detailed information. SEVIS data already adequately alerts U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and DOS when an international student or exchange visitor overstays or otherwise potentially fails to comply with the law. The rule ostensibly is designed to improve the integrity of the international student program and to protect national security. The rule does nothing to alter who is allowed to study in the U.S. and only impacts international students who seek to stay in the U.S. after predetermined duration of stay caps. Those who seek international student visas in order to threaten U.S. national security will not be vetted any differently upon entry, but only after they have been allowed entry on U.S. soil for two or four years (depending on the degree program sought). There is no evidence that this kind of policing will enhance national security. DHS refers to recommendations of the 9/11 Commission to better monitor international students, but DHS notes the creation of the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) and the implementation of the electronic Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) computer system that enables DHS to store and process information on foreign students and exchange visitors in the U.S. as having already occurred. The U.S. has not been fraught with crime or terrorist attacks at the hands of unscrupulous international students—still enrolled in colleges and universities—who have used the F-1 visa program to stay in the U.S. for long periods of time. DHS refers to fraudulent colleges and universities that offered visas, never offering classes or academic course offerings as a rationale for adopting these rules. First, DHS itself notices several prosecutions of these fraudulent operators. Second, these rules do little to further prevent such fraudulent operators as they do nothing related to vetting international students at the time they enter or during their studies and are only triggered when a student would seek to stay beyond the proscribed duration of stay time limits. DHS assertions of the prevalence of overstays are baseless. To calculate overstays, DHS relies on deeply flawed data that inaccurately inflates the number of individuals who overstay. To require students and exchange visitors to apply for extensions of stay is to disregard the 30-year history of expert management by school and program-designated institutional officials and is duplicative of the notification system already accomplished by SEVIS. Finally, DHS has identified a problem that appears limited in scope and impact and would jeopardize the future of higher education and America’s economic competitiveness to solve it, in essence, throwing out the baby with the bathwater. The proposed regulation notes that DHS has identified 2,100 F-1 students admitted between 2000 and 2010 retained F-1 status in 2025. Even if one assumes all of the roughly 600,000 F-1 students studying in the average year during this period were in four-year degree programs, it suggests that those 2,100 students were 0.14 percent out of the more than 1.5 million international students enrolled during that decade. In other words, 14 of every 10,000 international students allowed into the U.S. during that decade were found to still be enrolled on an F-1 visa more than 15 years after being granted entry. While undoubtedly it would be almost incomprehensible that such students were pursuing a specific degree for over 15 years, it is not clear that some students didn’t suspend their studies and returned 15+ years later, nor is it clear that the 2,100 students found to still be in the system were present in the U.S. and seeking to evade the law, as opposed to data error somewhere in the system. Again, it is important to contextualize the problem that DHS is seeking to solve.
The Importance of Spreading the Word and Engaging Business, Industry and Economic Development Sectors
Historically, federal regulations governing international education have only attracted attention from leaders in higher education. The Duration of Status proposed rule, however, is one of several attacks on international students who have played an increasingly critical role in the American economy. It is important for business, industry and economic development leaders to weigh in on these issues in order to protect the supply of critical talent needed for the U.S. economy, especially in STEM fields. Most Americans, business and economic development leaders and policymakers are unaware of the enormous economic contributions of international education and the talent proposition that graduating international students pose to help fill critical talent gaps. More than half of all international students major in STEM fields and international students account for more than 70 percent of the graduate students in critical disciplines such as electrical engineering and computer science. The Duration of Status rules fly in the face of comments made by President Trump on the campaign trail, as well as in the 2025 State of the Union address in which he promised to expand opportunities to work in the U.S. for graduating international students. It is important to make employers, chambers of commerce, industry groups, economic development organizations and other allies beyond the higher education sector aware of the proposed rule and to assist them in filing comments to the rule.
The Proposed Rule is Part of a Larger Attack on International Students and International education
Despite President Trump’s repeated promises on the campaign trail and during his State of the Union address to increase opportunities for international students to work in the U.S. after graduation, the federal government is in the midst of attempting to implement a series of policies that will have the exact opposite effect and will make the U.S. far less attractive to potential international students of the future. These policies began in late March when as many as 6,000 international students found their status had been summarily revoked, including some arrests on the streets of international students by masked ICE agents. Eventually, many of these students had their status reinstated and the Secretary of State clarified that these actions were motivated by concerns over political expression and speech these students made in relation to U.S. foreign policy and/or issues relating to Israel and Palestine that the federal government viewed as anti-Semitic. In May and June, the U.S. Secretary of State suspended all new visa appointments for incoming international students. Once the suspensions were lifted, consulars were instructed to implement new social media vetting protocols, creating significant processing delays. The proposed change in the Duration of Status rules represents yet another attack on international students—an attack that will greatly impact the ability for employers to reliably and timely hire international students on the OPT portion of their student visas. The Trump administration also has provided notice of its intent to change the H-1B visa program to implement new “weighting” policies that will give preference to more senior and mid-career professionals, biasing the H-1B lottery against early career international student graduates. Finally, the new director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) indicated in his Senate confirmation hearings that it was his desire to end the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program altogether. Given these series of attacks, it is important for business, industry and economic development leaders to weigh in on these issues in order to protect the supply of critical talent needed for the U.S. economy, especially in STEM fields.
Prepare and File Comments
By September 29
The proposed Duration of Status rule offers a 30-day comment period ending on September 29, 2025. Comments must be filed by then. All are welcome to comment, not only U.S. citizens. Comments can be filed in two ways:
or by emailing dhsdeskofficer@omb.eop.gov and including the docket number (DHS Docket No. ICEB-2025-0001) and “Attention: Desk Officer for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, DHS” in the subject line of the email.
There also are instructions in the rule to mail in comments if for some reason that is preferable.
Cut-and-paste Draft Comments
Below is a list of potential comments for you to cut-and-paste into a set of comments from you and your organization. Ideally, your comments will reflect you and your organization’s experience with international students and J-visa exchange visitors.
How to Get Involved
File Comments
The most effective way to oppose the Duration of Status proposed rule or to minimize its negative impacts is to file comments with DHS by September 29, 2025. The tab on this microsite gives you more details on how to file comments and what those comments might contain. But at this moment, filing comments is the most effective way to oppose these changes.
Spread the Word
One way to bring awareness to this issue and to raise the profile of the importance that international education and international students represent to America, our local economies and higher education is to write an opinion piece in local papers, business journals, newsletters, blogs, LinkedIn posts, and other social media. If you would like assistance in crafting an opinion piece or otherwise spreading the word, or if you have an opinion piece you want to share, please contact us at info@globaldetroitmi.org.
Join the E Pluribus International Student Retention Peer Learning Cohort
Global Detroit’s E Pluribus program supports an International Student Retention National Peer Learning Cohort of nearly three dozen local international student retention programs. These programs are immigrant economic inclusion initiatives, economic development organizations, chambers of commerce, state and municipal offices of New Americans, as well as state and local programs who are focused on connecting international student talent to unmet private sector talent needs. The cohort meets online monthly, conducts webinar, and shares research and best practices, as well as tools to advance local international student retention initiatives. To find out more information and/or join the group email us at info@globaldetroitmi.org.
Make a Donation
Global Detroit is a tax-exempt charitable organization. Our E Pluribus national work currently operates without any dedicated funding. If you want to support this program please contact us or consider a donation at https://globaldetroitmi.org/donate/.
Volunteer
Whether it’s crafting social media posts, doing research, analyzing data, conducting outreach to partner organizations, designing websites and reports or just helping out, we welcome volunteers. Email us at info@globaldetroitmi.org to find out more.
Get Others to File Comments
Thankfully a number of colleges, universities and higher education coalitions will be filing comments. The purpose of this microsite is to engage important voices that have not traditionally spoken up about this topic and the importance of international education and international students. Specifically, we hope you will work with E Pluribus to get employers, business groups, chambers of commerce, economic development organizations, state and local government and other voices to file comments opposing this proposed rule.
Host a Webinar
Most Americans, business and economic development leaders and policymakers are unaware of the enormous economic contributions of international education and the talent proposition that graduating international students pose to help fill critical talent gaps. Hosting a webinar to provide data on those contributions, as well as to explain the Duration of Status proposed rule can help educate these partners. Global Detroit’s E Pluribus program would love to work with you to help host a webinar to spread information on this proposed rule and/or the importance of international education and international students to our economy. Please contact us at info@globaldetroitmi.org if you need assistance.
Get in Touch
Global Detroit and the E Pluribus program would love to hear from you. If you have questions, ideas, requests or just want to talk about these issues, drop us a line at info@globaldetroitmi.org.
Join the U.S. for Success Coalition and/or Other Advocacy Groups
There are other national policies that would negatively impact international education and international students that are being considered right now and working in coalition is one way you can stay informed and help further the cause of supporting international education and international students. The U.S. for Success Coalition is one multi-sector effort that aims to foster international student success in the United States through a coordinated national effort working in partnership with the U.S. government, higher education institutions, the business sector, and other key partners to foster supportive federal policies and practices. You can join the U.S. for Success Coalition at https://www.usforsuccess.org/join-us.