The U.S. government is imposing a cap on the length of stay for international students and exchange visitors. A system that had effectively allowed people to remain indefinitely as long as their studies continued will disappear for the first time in 47 years. Korean students who have planned their careers around earning degrees in the United States are expected to have no choice but to revise their plans.
According to Bloomberg and Reuters, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on the 16th local time its final rule limiting the stay of F-visa international students and J-visa exchange visitors in the United States to a maximum of four years. The rule will take effect 60 days later, in mid-September. The I visa, issued to foreign media correspondents, will also change to a system requiring extension approval every 240 days. Chinese journalists will continue to be subject to the existing 90-day period.
The rule will take effect 60 days after publication in the Federal Register. If the schedule holds, the implementation date will be in mid-September. Students arriving in time for the fall semester may fall under the new rule.
◆ The end of an indefinite-stay system after 47 years
The core of this overhaul is the abolition of the “duration of status” (D/S) system maintained since 1978. Until now, student visa holders could remain in the United States without a fixed end date as long as they were enrolled in school and progressing normally through their programs. Going forward, a specific departure date will be assigned at the time of entry.
Anyone seeking to continue studying beyond four years must apply for a stay extension from the authorities. During the review, they must specifically explain their academic progress and future plans, and the extension may be denied if the evidence is insufficient. DHS said student visa extensions will be possible only through strict review.
The scope is broad. Students already in the United States on student visas will also be automatically converted to the four-year stay rule. DHS also said it will impose strict limits on changing majors. That means the option to switch fields based on one’s interests during study will become narrower.
DHS cited administrative burden as the reason for revising the rule. It said the number of foreigners staying on student and exchange visitor visas has increased sharply, making the management and monitoring of their status more burdensome. It also pointed to cases in which some international students repeatedly enrolled in classes to avoid leaving the country and remain in the United States long term.
◆ A direct hit to doctoral programs, affecting 13,000 Korean students
Bloomberg estimated that about 1.2 million international students worldwide are preparing to earn degrees in the United States. According to the South Korean Embassy in Washington, as of last year there were 11,861 Koreans staying in the United States on F-1 student visas, plus 1,347 family members holding F-2 visas.
The biggest impact will be on long-term programs. Doctoral studies in the United States typically take more than five years to complete coursework and dissertation review, and in some fields seven years or more is not unusual. It is also common for students to take preparatory language training before entering undergraduate programs, or to move from undergraduate to graduate study, making it easy to exceed four years. For these students, the extension review will not be optional but a mandatory hurdle to earning a degree. If they fail the review, they could be forced to interrupt their studies even when graduation is just around the corner.
Restrictions on J visas are also expected to ripple through academic exchange. This visa is used not only by exchange students but also by visiting researchers and postdoctoral researchers. For researchers engaged in long-term joint projects or continuous collaborative work, the four-year cap and extension review could become a significant obstacle.
Separate from the extension review, administrative burdens and higher costs are also expected. When the Trump administration attempted a similar policy during its first term, universities and the medical community opposed it, arguing that it would impose unnecessary administrative burdens on students and interfere with their studies, and the policy was ultimately scrapped. This time, however, after a public comment period and final rule approval, implementation has effectively become certain.
There are also concerns that processing delays could arise if extension applications surge. If all students staying beyond four years are subject to review at once, backlogs and longer waiting times could follow. The study-abroad industry warns that students may face academic and status instability while waiting for decisions.
The study-abroad industry is discussing several principles for adapting to the new system. The advice is to design academic timelines so they can be completed within four years from the start, and to manage documentation of grades, research achievements, and academic plans in advance in preparation for extension reviews. Since changing majors could lead to visa-status problems, students are urged to be cautious, and they are advised to check the latest guidance with their school’s international student office before and after the rule takes effect.
For those preparing to leave this fall, there are more items to check. The rules applied may differ depending on whether the date of entry falls before or after the implementation date. Students are advised to determine in advance whether the program period listed in their admission documents exceeds four years, and if so, to incorporate the extension review schedule into their academic plans.
◆ Part of a broader tightening of immigration policy
The move is seen as part of the Trump administration’s broader effort to tighten immigration rules. Alongside large-scale crackdowns and deportations of undocumented immigrants, the administration has also strengthened restrictions on legal residence and employment pathways. A representative example is the imposition of a $100,000 fee on H-1B skilled worker visas.
The revision of journalist visas follows the same trend. Until now, correspondents have maintained their status for relatively long periods, but going forward they will need extension approval every 240 days. Media circles are voicing concerns that shorter review cycles could undermine the continuity of long-term reporting and correspondent operations.
Pressure on international students has also continued. The U.S. State Department revoked the visas of hundreds of international students who participated in campus protests this year, and those students say the move amounts to political retaliation against freedom of expression.
Another ripple effect is expected on U.S. campuses. International students are a major pillar of university finances and research staffing in the United States. As uncertainty over stays increases, there are predictions that talented students may turn to other study destinations such as Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia. This is why the U.S. education sector is raising concerns that the restrictions could backfire and hurt the competitiveness of American universities.
Domestic study-abroad agencies and university international exchange offices in South Korea are expected to face a steady stream of inquiries. Korean students preparing to study in the United States have just a little over two months left. Details such as how the rule will apply to those entering before and after the implementation date, and the specific criteria for extension reviews, are expected to be clarified in additional guidance. More than the decision to study abroad itself, the design of the academic timeline and preparation of supporting documents are emerging as the variables that will determine the success of studying in the United States.