A new Department of Homeland Security rule imposing a four-year maximum stay on F-1 and J-1 visa holders could force international students — including thousands of Indians — out of the United States midway through their degrees or research programmes, the Foundation for India and Indian Diaspora Studies (FIIDS) has warned. The rule, finalised on 16–17 July, is set to take effect in mid-September 2025.

What the New Rule Changes

The measure ends the decades-old 'duration of status' policy, which previously allowed international students to remain in the US for as long as their academic programme required. In its place, a hard four-year cap applies — and critically, time spent on Optional Practical Training (OPT) and STEM OPT counts toward that limit. The post-study grace period has also been cut from 60 days to 30 days. Students who need more time must now seek approval from US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) through Form I-539, a process that currently faces a backlog of over 11 million cases with roughly year-long processing times, according to FIIDS.

Why Doctoral and Research Programmes Are Most at Risk

FIIDS points out that the four-year ceiling is structurally misaligned with how modern American degrees actually work. According to the group, the median time to complete a bachelor's degree in the US is approximately 52 months, while a PhD takes a median of 5.7 years. J-1 research scholars and physicians routinely require between five and seven years to complete their programmes. Under the new rule, many of these students would hit the cap before finishing — with no guaranteed pathway to stay.

'This is a self-inflicted wound on US competitiveness,' said Khanderao Kand, chief of policy and strategy at FIIDS. 'A 4-year cap misaligns with how modern degrees actually work — median time to a bachelor's is about 52 months and to a PhD about 5.7 years — while USCIS is already sitting on more than 11 million cases with roughly year-long processing times.'

Economic and Innovation Fallout

The consequences extend beyond individual students. FIIDS estimates that new international enrolments already fell 17 per cent in autumn 2025 — the steepest drop since the pandemic — resulting in more than $1.1 billion in lost revenue and nearly 23,000 fewer jobs across the US. The group warns that further disruption could destabilise university laboratories, delay graduations, and unsettle faculty recruitment plans built around international talent. 'Students will be forced out mid-program or mid-research, labs will lose critical talent, and America will hand its innovation pipeline to competitors,' Kand said.

What FIIDS Is Demanding

FIIDS has urged Congress and USCIS to halt immediate implementation of the rule. Its specific proposals include: restoring duration-of-status protections for F-1 and J-1 holders; creating statutory exemptions for graduate and STEM programmes whose median completion periods exceed 48 months, subject to a 64-month outer limit with automatic extensions; excluding OPT and STEM OPT time from the four-year calculation; expediting Form I-539 processing; and reinstating the 60-day post-completion grace period. 'Delay implementation, protect students, and safeguard US research and innovation,' Kand said. 'If the goal is integrity, do it without blowing up degree pathways that power American labs and startups.'

This comes amid a broader tightening of US immigration policy that has already rattled international student pipelines globally. With mid-September fast approaching, universities and advocacy groups are racing to secure administrative relief before the rule takes effect.