Proposed rule to eliminate ‘‘D/S” (Duration of Status)

14 November 2025 Update

Final publication date for the D/S rule is still unknown, but given that DHS stated in its Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) that the final rule will be published at least 60 days prior to its effective date and given the academic calendar (many students graduating in the spring) - we might expect the final D/S elimination rule in December or January.

Presuming the rule content finalized as it is as proposed, those immediately impacted include the following.

1. Post-docs on J-1 visas.

   If they are issued the DS-2019 for a 1- or 2-year increment because of funding limitations, they will have to apply for an extension to USCIS each year.

2. Any 1st year PhD student.

   PhD programs can routinely exceed four years – the maximum duration allowed under the proposed rule. Many PhD candidates might need to file for extensions in order to complete their degree.

3. Many engaged in graduate medical education.

   Foreign-born doctors participating in graduate medical education in the US must, will need to apply for extensions if their residency program exceeds four years.

4. Any Bachelors, Master’s, or PhD student pre-graduation who wants to apply for OPT.

Given that DHS stated in its NPRM that the final rule will be published at least 60 days prior to its effective date and given the academic calendar (many students graduating in the spring) - we might expect the final D/S elimination rule to be published in December or January.

Note - you can also look the NPRM published by DHS (just search for "transition period ") to find the details from the agency (especially starting on p. 42084 and in new section 214.1(m) of proposed regulatory text).

30 September 2025

This is a proposed regulation to remove the Duration of Status (D/S) notation given to students upon admission to the U.S.  If implemented as is, it would limit the duration of stay (D/S) allowed to international students and require extensions of stay to be filed with USCIS.

Background: F-1 students and J-1 students and scholars are admitted to the U.S. with a D/S notation, meaning they are admitted to the U.S. for “Duration of Status”, and not for a date-certain end date issued to most non-immigrant visitors.  This means that if a student is studying at a U.S. college or university, they can extend their stay in the U.S. simply by requesting that extension from their immigration advisor at the admitting school.  These immigration advisors, called “Designated School Officials” or DSO’s, review the reasons for the needed extension, enter the new end date in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System ((SEVIS), and issue a new I-20 form, or DS-2019 form to the student or scholar. There is no required application to USCIS, no government application fee, and no lengthy processing delay based on government backlogs.  This proposed rule changes the process for extensions and limits some other currently allowed F-1 and J-1 benefits such as changes of academic level, extensions, transfers, limits on length of programs.

If the rule is implemented as is, international students and scholars may face increased delays when applying to USCIS for status extensions, changes of academic programs, transfers to new schools; increased fees and government paperwork; and possible denials of requests based on USCIS interpretations of the academic requirements for each request.  The comment period for this rule closes on October 27, 2025.  The government must publicly address all submitted comments and make any needed changes prior to publishing the final rule.

Find the full published proposed rule here.

Weighted selection process for H-1B petitions (proposed regulation)

24 September 2025

This is a proposed regulation to apply a weighted selection process based on wage levels to determine access to the H-1B lottery program. Instead of a purely random lottery, USCIS would assign more entries to H-1B registrations offering higher wages, based on the Department of Labor’s four wage levels. 

Background: The U.S. government limits the number of H-1B work visas allowed to all U.S. for-profit companies each year to 85,000.  Non-profit institutions, universities and colleges, are exempt from this annual limit.

Over the last decade, the number of H-1B visa applications have greatly exceeded the allowed number of H-1B visas.  In April of 2025, for example, the U.S. received five times more H petitions than there were available H visas.  As a result, the government implemented a random lottery system in March of 2020.  Sponsoring employers are required to register for a lottery in order to have a chance to gain a slot for filing an H petition.

An H-1B petition must include an analysis of the offered wage based on the requirements of the job and the geographic area. This analysis uses data from the Department of Labor wage database, or other private wage surveys or analysis.  Each position is assigned a wage level between 1 and 4 - 1 being entry level and 4 being fully competent.  This proposed regulation would change the H lottery from a random process to one that is weighted based on the wage level offered. Petitions offering a Level 4 wage would receive 4 chances in the lottery; Level 3 wages would receive 3 entries; Level 2 wages, 2 entries, and LEvel 1 wages, 1 entry. This would likely skew the results of the lottery to heavily favor the selection of H petitions that were paying higher level wages, and disadvantage petitions that were for entry level positions (even if the entry level wage was high but still categorized as a Level 1 wage).

Prevailing wage information from the Department of Labor can be found here.

You can view the proposed rule here.

Presidential Proclamation regarding a new $100,000 fee for some H-1B petitions

September 19 2025

A presidential proclamation was issued on September 19, 2025, requiring a new $100,000 fee for certain new H-1B petition filings and / or visa applications. Titled, "Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers,", the proclamation took effect September 21, 2025.

On September 20, 2025, USCIS issued guidance on the new fee.

On October 16, 2025, a lawsuit was filed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, challenging the application of this fee. For a complete analysis of the lawsuit, see Stuart Anderson's Forbes article from October 17, 2025.

On October 20, 2025, USCIS provided another update on the new H-1B $100,000 fee.

This recent update clarified that the new fee does not apply to petitions filed for non-immigrants present in the U.S., for extensions of stay, changes of status, or amendments to previously approved petitions. It also does not apply to persons holding current H-1B status, who depart the U.S. and who need to apply for and receive a new H-1B visa prior to returning to the U.S. The new guidance provides instructions on how the fee must be paid, and gives some information regarding a possible exception from the fee for persons whose work is deemed in the national interest. It does not mention the possibility of exceptions being provided to certain industries, which is mentioned in the original proclamation.

We will provide updates on the pending lawsuit as soon as additional information is available.

More information:

• Proclamation

• White House Fact Sheet

• Some additional guidance from DOS 

Shorter new visas for certain countries

September 2025

Changes to the Visa Reciprocity tables for certain countries.  Changes were made to the duration of visas issued for certain countries, and the number of entries allowed per visa issued.  Check updates here.

Additional restrictions on allowed visa interview waivers

September 2025

As an update to the visa waiver changes announced in July 2025, effective October 1, 2025, F and J student visa applicants are no longer eligible for visa application interview waivers. Previously, F and J students were able to waive out of the visa interview if they were applying to renew a visa that had expired within the previous 48 months, and they were applying in their home country.  This is no longer the case, and students can probably expect to see increasing delays in getting visa application appointments. See here.

Data tracking requirement changes for U.S. schools

September 2025

A proposed regulation was published on September 3, 2025, requiring additional data tracking for the F-1 I-20 form and the sponsoring school’s I-17 form.  The additional fields that would need to be tracked by schools would include 

• more specific information pertaining to the educational level, degree, program of study, time necessary to complete the program, assigned Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) code, and mode of instruction - specifically whether the course is online, in a hybrid or low residency format.  

• Relating to employment and experiential earning, schools would need to report as to whether Curricular Practical Training (CPT) is required by any program of study.  

• The schools will be able to list differing program costs by degree level, along with other changes relating to reporting on DSO information. 

• More specific information on financial resources for the student, whether the student is working on campus, or performing other employment or training. 

• The proposed regulation can be reviewed here.