What’s Happening?

On September 14, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts issued nationwide preliminary relief blocking implementation of the Department of Homeland Security’s (“DHS”) final rule that was scheduled to eliminate Duration of Status (“D/S”) for F-1 students, J-1 exchange visitors, and I representatives of foreign information media beginning September 15, 2026.

As D&S previously reported on July 17, 2026, DHS finalized the rule replacing the longstanding D/S framework with fixed periods of admission, with an effective date of September 15, 2026.

The rule will now not take effect on September 15, 2026, and the existing D/S framework remains in place for now. The Court postponed the rule’s effective date and preliminarily enjoined DHS and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) from taking further action to implement it while the litigation continues.