F-1 Four-Year Cap Rule Remains Blocked Nationwide as Litigation Reaches Judgment Stage: Government Appeal Brief Due November 9
As of November 4, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) final rule that would replace the longstanding "duration of status" (D/S) framework for international students with a fixed period of admission of up to four years remains blocked nationwide by a federal court and has not taken effect. F-1 students are still admitted for duration of status, the post-completion grace period is still 60 days, and no extension-of-stay filing with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is currently required.
DHS published the final rule in the Federal Register on July 17, 2026 (91 FR 44976). Titled "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," it covers F-1 students, J-1 exchange visitors and I-visa foreign media representatives, and was due to take effect on September 15. Under D/S, F-1 students may remain as long as they pursue a full course of study, with no fixed end date; the rule would instead admit them for a fixed period of up to four years, requiring an extension application for any longer program.
A coalition led by the Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, joined by NAFSA, the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities in Massachusetts, the American Federation of Teachers, the NewsGuild-CWA and other labor organizations, sued DHS in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts on August 18, 2026 (Presidents' Alliance v. DHS, No. 1:26-cv-13799-FDS). After a hearing in Boston on September 3, U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV granted nationwide preliminary relief on September 14, one day before the rule's effective date, postponing the effective date and prohibiting DHS and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from taking any further action to implement the rule while the litigation proceeds.
The government filed a notice of appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on September 30, 2026 (No. 26-2112); the appeal does not put the rule into effect, and the district court's order remains in force. In district court, the government provided the administrative record on October 23, both sides filed cross-motions for summary judgment on October 30, and on November 2 the plaintiffs filed their response and the government its reply, completing summary judgment briefing; a ruling on the merits may come at any time. In the First Circuit, the government's opening brief is due November 9, 2026, the plaintiffs' response brief is due December 9, and the government then has 10 days to file a reply.
The case is separate from the proposed DHS rule that would charge schools fees for F-1 students' Optional Practical Training, whose public comment period closes November 9 and which GSM has covered in recent days. The four-year cap rule, by contrast, completed the rulemaking process and is stalled at the court-block stage; both tracks reach a key date on November 9.
(Source: U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts)
Source: U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于 Boston 的 Boston University 东校区与 Commonwealth Avenue，本案由总部在麻萨诸塞州的高等教育机构联盟在该州联邦法院提起。4300streetcar 摄，CC BY 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: Boston University's East Campus and Commonwealth Avenue in Boston; the case was filed in Massachusetts federal court by a coalition of higher-education organizations. By 4300streetcar, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
