The New F-1 Visa 4-Year Rule: End of Duration of Status

For decades, international students in the United States lived under a flexible system called Duration of Status. You could stay as long as you held full-time enrollment and a valid I-20. That system is now ending. The Department of Homeland Security will admit F-1 students for a period of up to four years, and you will need formal approval if you need more time. Read this Abroadin guide on the end of duration of status to understand how the rule works.

DHS published the final rule on July 17, 2026, with an effective date of September 15, 2026. On September 14, 2026, a federal court in Massachusetts issued a nationwide order that postpones that effective date while litigation continues. The old Duration of Status framework therefore remains in effect for now. Universities still advise all current and future students to learn the new rules, because the court could lift the pause at any time.

What does the End of Duration of Status Mean for Students

Under the old system, a border officer admitted you for D/S instead of a specific date. Your permission to stay lasted as long as you pursued a full course of study at a SEVP-certified school or you held authorized practical training after graduation, plus a grace period to depart or transfer.

DHS published the final rule titled “Establishing a Fixed Time Period of Admission and an Extension of Stay Procedure” on July 17, 2026. The rule covers F-1 academic students and F-2 dependents, as well as J-1 visitors and I media representatives under parallel provisions.

DHS says a fixed admission date gives officers a clear point to review whether a student still qualifies for status and whether they make normal progress toward a degree. Schools, student groups, and many universities oppose the change and challenged it in court, which led to the current pause.

Once the rule of the end of duration of status takes effect, every new entry in F status will receive a fixed Admit Until Date, or AUD, on the I-94 record instead of D/S.

How Long You Can Stay Under the Fixed 4-Year System

Under the final rule, Customs and Border Protection admits you for the length of your program as listed on your Form I-20, up to a maximum of four years. You also receive up to 30 days before your program start date to arrive and 30 days after your program end date to depart.

• If your bachelor's degree takes four years, your admission period can cover the full program.
• If your master's degree takes two years, your admission period covers two years.
• If your PhD takes six years, your admission period still ends after four years, and you must request an extension for the remainder.

Your Form I-94 will show a specific “admit until” date. That date will control your lawful stay, not the program end date alone. If that date passes and you have not left the US or obtained an extension, you can start to accrue unlawful presence the next day.

Under the old D/S system, unlawful presence in most cases started only after a formal finding by USCIS or an immigration judge. This shift makes the AUD the most important date in your student life.

The four-year cap is not a lifetime limit. It caps a single admission period. You can request more time in valid increments, but each increment requires USCIS approval or a new entry.

What is the Shorter 30-Day Departure Period

F-1 students had 60 days after program completion or after post-completion OPT to prepare to depart, transfer, or change status. The final rule cuts this period to 30 days for anyone admitted under the new system.

• If you complete your degree on May 10 and have a new fixed I-94, you must depart by June 9 unless you have another lawful basis to stay.
• If you finish OPT on June 30, you must depart by July 30.
• If you fall out of status because you drop below full-time enrollment without approval or work without authorization, you have no grace period and must leave at once.

Students who already hold D/S and stay inside the US without travel keep the legacy 60-day grace period during the transition. Once such a student exits and re-enters or obtains an Extension of Stay from USCIS, the new 30-day period applies to all future stays.

How You Extend Your Stay With Form I-539 | End of Duration of Status

If you need more time to finish your current program, start a new program, or complete OPT or STEM OPT, you must file for an Extension of Stay, or EOS, with USCIS once the rule applies. In the past, your Designated School Official, or DSO, could extend your I-20 in SEVIS without USCIS approval. Now USCIS decides.

The process has two stages:

• First, you ask your DSO for a recommendation and an updated I-20 with a new program end date.
• Second, you file Form I-539, Application to Extend or Change Nonimmigrant Status, with the filing fee and biometrics before your current AUD expires.

The current USCIS fee is $420 for an online filing and $470 for a paper filing. If you file on time, you enter a period of authorized stay while USCIS reviews your case. You do not accrue unlawful presence during this time, and you can continue a full course of study.

In some employment-related cases, USCIS can allow you to continue working for up to 240 days while the EOS remains pending, and STEM OPT applicants retain the existing 180-day automatic extension of an Employment Authorization Document for a filed STEM extension. You should still file early, up to 180 days before your AUD, because processing can stretch for months.

Travel offers a second path. You can depart the US and re-enter with a valid visa and an updated I-20. CBP will then issue a new I-94 with a new fixed period. Many students may prefer the I-539 route because travel costs money and a new visa interview always carries risk.

What are the Limits on Transfer, Change of Major, and New Programs

The final rule restricts how often you can change direction, and graduate students face the strictest limits.
Students in programs below the graduate level cannot transfer schools or change educational level during the first academic year unless SEVP approves an exception for extenuating circumstances. For example, a first-year bachelor student cannot switch universities in year one without special permission.

Graduate students cannot change their educational objective at any point under the standard process. If you start a master's in computer science, you cannot switch to an MBA or to a separate PhD track as an F-1 student without an approved exception. Graduate students also cannot transfer to another school unless SEVP approves an exception. Students on probation or suspension cannot transfer or change programs.

The rule also allows upward progression only after you complete a program on or after the effective date. After you finish one program level, you can start a new program only at a higher level. If you finish a master's degree, you can move to a PhD, but you cannot start a second master's degree or a bachelor's degree in a new field in F-1 status. Programs you completed before the effective date do not count toward this limit.

Students in English language training programs face a total cap of 24 months of study, including breaks and vacations. These limits mean you should choose your school and major with care before you enter the US. Speak with your DSO and with an Abroadin advisor before you request any change.

What Happens to Current Students Who Already Hold D/S

If you held D/S status and maintained it on the effective date, you do not need to apply for a new I-94 right away as long as you remain in the US. You can remain until your current I-20 program end date or until the end of your current OPT or STEM OPT authorization valid on that date, whichever applies. In all cases, this transition period cannot go beyond four years from the effective date.

DHS and SEVP calculate that outside limit as November 14, 2030 for F-1 students, which reflects four years plus the 60-day departure window for this transition group. If your I-20 ends in 2028, that earlier date controls your stay. If your PhD runs to 2031, the transition cap cuts you off earlier, and you must file an EOS before that cap.

Travel changes your situation. If you leave the US after the effective date and you re-enter, CBP will admit you under the new fixed-date system. You will receive a date-specific I-94 tied to your I-20 end date, up to four years, plus 30 days to depart. After that point, all extension and transfer rules apply to you in full.

If you stay in the US and do not travel, you still must follow the new academic restrictions on transfers and program changes during the transition period.

What the End of Duration of Status Means for OPT and STEM OPT

OPT rules link to your fixed admission period once the rule applies. If your I-94 covers the full OPT period you request, you only need to file Form I-765 for employment authorization as before.

If your AUD expires before the end of the OPT period you want, you must file both Form I-765 and Form I-539 for an EOS. You cannot start work on OPT until USCIS approves both. You must also request an OPT start date within 30 days of your program end date, and the normal OPT filing window will run 90 days before to 30 days after your program end date.

DHS created a one-time transition window for students who were admitted for D/S, stayed inside the US, and apply for post-completion OPT or STEM OPT on or before March 18, 2027. If you meet those conditions and you file Form I-765 on time, you do not need a separate EOS for that OPT period. File well before the end of duration of status and keep your receipt notice.

After that window, the dual filing requirement applies to everyone under the new system. If you travel and re-enter under a fixed AUD before you file for OPT, you lose the transition benefit, and you must file both forms even before March 18, 2027.

Students with a pending cap-subject H-1B petition keep cap-gap protection. If an employer filed an H-1B petition for you with a change-of-status request, your F-1 status and qualifying OPT work authorization extend automatically until USCIS decides the H-1B case or until April 1 of the fiscal year in question, whichever comes first. You do not need a separate EOS for that cap-gap period.

What PhD Students and Other Long Programs Should Do Now

PhD students face the most direct impact from the four-year cap because most doctoral programs in the US take five to seven years. No PhD student can complete a full doctorate on a single admission period under the new system.

If you start a PhD after the rule takes effect, CBP will likely admit you for about four years from entry, plus 30 days. You must file an EOS before that date even if your I-20 shows a later end date and even if your funding continues. Your DSO must recommend the extension first, and USCIS must approve it.

Strong academic records help a lot in that process. Meet milestones on schedule and document dissertation progress, publications, teaching duties, and advisor support. Avoid probation, incompletes, or long gaps without enrollment. If you need extra time because of a documented medical issue or a circumstance outside your control, gather letters and records that explain the delay.

Professional bachelor programs that include a fifth year, combined bachelor-plus-master tracks, and students who need to repeat key courses should plan the same way. Map your AUD against your study plan in your first semester, not in your final year.

How You Can Protect Your Status Under the New System

Check your I-94 after every entry at i94.cbp.dhs.gov and save a copy. Compare the “admit until” date with your I-20 program end date. Set reminders at 180 days and 90 days before the earlier date.

Meet your DSO early if you see any risk of delay. Do not wait until the end of duration of status. Ask about the school timeline for an EOS recommendation, financial documents, and SEVIS updates. USCIS requires timely filing so that a late request can destroy an otherwise strong case.

Maintain full-time enrollment, attend classes, and report address or program changes at once. Do not work off campus without written authorization. Do not let your passport expire. Keep all I-20s, I-94 records, EAD cards, pay stubs, and USCIS receipts in one file.

Avoid unnecessary travel in your final semester if your AUD will expire soon. If you must travel, carry a valid visa, a recently signed I-20, proof of enrollment, and proof of funding. Remember that re-entry after the effective date places you under the fixed-date regime with a new AUD.

Conclusion

The end of Duration of Status changes the core logic of student life in the US. You will hold a fixed admission period of up to four years, a 30-day departure window for new admissions, and a formal USCIS process for any extra time through Form I-539. Transfer and major-change limits, academic progress checks, and unlawful presence rules make early planning essential, especially for PhD students and OPT applicants.

Because a court has paused the September 15, 2026 effective date, current D/S rules still apply today. The pause could end after further litigation, so use this period to prepare.

Abroadin helps you track your I-94 date, prepare a strong EOS file, choose a compliant study path, and plan OPT or H-1B steps without gaps. Contact Abroadin before your admission period runs short.