US sets fixed visa terms for students, exchange visitors and journalists
A DHS rule will end open-ended stays for several visa categories, requiring extensions for students, exchange visitors and foreign media workers.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
3 min read
The Trump administration is imposing fixed end dates on visas for foreign students, exchange visitors and journalists, replacing a long-running system that often allowed stays to continue while a person remained enrolled or working in an approved role. The Department of Homeland Security says the change is meant to improve oversight of people in those visa categories.
Under a DHS rule released Thursday, international students and exchange visitors will generally be allowed to stay for up to four years. Foreign journalists will be admitted for up to 240 days at a time, while journalists who are Chinese nationals will be limited to 90 days.
People who need more time in the United States will have to seek an extension or leave the country and apply to return, according to the rule. The regulation is set to take effect 60 days after it is published in the Federal Register, subject to congressional review.
The timing could affect college admissions for programs beginning in August and September. Universities and immigration advocates have warned that tighter visa rules may raise costs and make the United States less appealing to students, teachers and researchers, Reuters reported.
DHS cites oversight concerns
DHS said the previous system allowed some visa holders to remain in the country for very long periods without a fixed departure date. In a news release when the policy was proposed last summer, the department said past administrations had permitted foreign students and other visa holders to stay “virtually indefinitely,” creating safety risks, taxpayer costs and disadvantages for U.S. citizens.
The department said in the rule that it has found cases of students and exchange visitors remaining in those statuses for decades. DHS said more than 2,100 people who first entered the United States as students between 2000 and 2010 still held student status in April after enrolling in new programs, changing schools or extending program dates.
The rule also places tighter limits on how international students may transfer schools or change academic programs. DHS said those restrictions will be especially relevant at the graduate level.
Visa admissions have grown
DHS said there were more than 1.8 million student visa admissions in 2024, an increase of more than 11% from the prior year. The department also said the United States admitted more than 500,000 exchange visitors and about 37,300 foreign journalists during fiscal year 2024, which ended Sept. 30, 2024.
The department said the rising number of visitors in those categories has made monitoring and oversight more difficult. The policy fits into President Donald Trump’s broader effort to restrict immigration since he returned to office in January 2025, including measures aimed at both legal and illegal immigration.
In June, the State Department said it had revoked more than 100,000 visas since Trump’s return to office, including 8,000 held by students. Many of the student visa revocations were tied to political activism, according to Reuters.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.