These FAQs are provided to share general information and not as legal advice. Please consult with a competent, licensed immigration attorney if you have questions about how the final rule may affect you as an employer or as a noncitizen who currently holds J-1 status or is interested in obtaining J-1 status.
Overview
The Trump Administration issued a Final Rule eliminating “duration of status” (D/S) admission for J-1 Exchange Visitors, F-1 students, and I foreign information media representatives, which takes effect on September 15, 2026. This rule will have a significant impact on international students and exchange visitors in the U.S., as outlined in a comment submitted in response to the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) by the American Immigration Council and AILA. For the F-1 and J-1 categories, the Final Rule replaces open-ended D/S admissions with a fixed expiration date tied to each individual’s program end date, up to a maximum of 4 years. Individuals who wish to remain in the U.S. in their current status beyond that date will need to apply directly to the Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for an Extension of Stay (EOS).
As supporters of the global movement of people and ideas, we remain concerned about how this change may affect students and exchange visitors, host employers, and the broader innovation economy.
However, for most J-1 Exchange Visitors participating in a time-limited cultural exchange program, host employers, and partner organizations, we expect the change to fixed status to have relatively little effect on those who comply with the terms and conditions of the J-1 status. The J-1 Exchange Visitor Program is already limited in length. Most exchange programs fit within the 4-year maximum. However, J-1 Research Scholar programs may require more than 4 years to complete.
For Participants
Under the previous system, your status upon admission to the United States in J-1 status would be “duration of status (D/S).” The government used D/S to represent the period of time that you are participating in your exchange program and complying with program regulations, plus the departure grace period. If you are already in the U.S. in J-1 status on September 15, 2026, you do not need to take any action, but you become authorized to remain in the U.S. for a fixed end date based on the program end date on your DS-2019 or 4 years from the rule’s effective date (September 15, 2030), whichever comes first, plus a 30-day departure grace period. If you depart the U.S. after September 15, 2026, and then return in J-1 status to the same program, you will be admitted for a fixed end date based on the program end date on your DS-2019, but no longer than 4 years from the rule’s effective date (September 15, 2030), plus the 30-day departure grace period. If you need to remain beyond the end date—whether you never left after September 15, or you departed and were readmitted—you will need to apply for an Extension of Stay (EOS) through United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
If you have applied for and not yet received a J-1 cultural exchange visa or are in the process of applying through a designated sponsor organization, the fixed-period framework will apply to you from the start. Your period of admission to the United States will have an exact expiration date coinciding with your program end date, or 4 years from the date you are admitted to the United States, whichever comes first, plus a 30-day departure grace period. If you are admitted to the U.S. as a J-1 during the 30 days preceding your program start date, these days are not counted when computing the maximum admission time.
The rule change applies to all J-1 exchange programs. However, most J-1 programs are already significantly shorter than 4 years, so the practical impact is limited for most participants who comply with the J-1 requirements. Programs that could be affected are those with longer durations such as Research Scholar (up to 5 years—see below) and Alien Physician (up to 7 years).
Before your fixed admission end date is reached, you will need to file an Extension of Status (EOS) application with USCIS. Your program sponsor will need to issue an updated DS-2019, and then you will file the EOS application (currently Form I-539) directly with USCIS, along with required supporting documents.
Important: USCIS processing times vary, and at some service centers can run several months. It is critical to file well in advance of your admission end date. Your program sponsor will provide guidance on timing and required documentation.
If your EOS application is denied, you will be required to depart the U.S. immediately (unless you have other immigration options, which are outside of the scope of this Q&A). There are significant consequences for failing to depart in a timely manner, including being detained and placed in removal proceedings.
J-2 dependents (spouse and unmarried children under age 21) are subject to the same fixed admission framework as the principal J-1 exchange visitor. Their authorized period of stay cannot exceed the J-1 principal’s authorized stay. If you need to file an EOS, your J-2 dependents can either be included on your application or file their own (either separately or as co-applicants on the same application). If you have a child who is close to reaching 21 years of age, you may wish to file your own J-1 EOS, and each dependent file for EOS separately, to avoid approvals for all being limited to the time remaining until the child turns 21. If your EOS is denied, you and your dependents must depart immediately (unless you have other immigration options, which are outside of the scope of this Q&A).
Yes, the new rule does not change the process for changing employers or placements within a J-1 program. You may still change employers or placements in consultation and with the approval of your sponsor organization.
For Host Employers and Immigration Attorneys
For employees who are in the United States in J-1 status on September 15, 2026 (the rule’s effective date), they are authorized, without their having to take any action, to remain in the U.S. until a fixed end date based on their program end date or 4 years from the rule’s effective date (September 15, 2030), whichever comes first. Per USCIS instructions in the Handbook for Employers (M-274), a J-1 exchange visitor must enter the DS-2019 Program End Date on the Form I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification, as the date their work authorization expires. Employers are required to reverify a J-1 worker’s employment eligibility by no later than the work authorization expiration date. Since most exchange programs fit within the 4-year limit, the work authorization end date for these J-1 workers should not be affected by the change from D/S. However, for J-1 Research Scholars whose programs exceed 4 years, we do not know, as of the date this Q&A was prepared, what steps employers and these J-1 workers will be required to follow when the J-1 admission period changes to a fixed end date.
For individuals who have been hired, applied for and not yet received a J-1 cultural exchange visa or are in the process of applying through a designated sponsor organization, the fixed-period framework applies from the outset. When they are admitted to the United States in J-1 status, they will have an exact expiration date coinciding with their program end date, or 4 years from the date they are admitted to the United States, whichever comes first, plus a 30-day departure grace period. The 30-day departure period is not a period during which the individual is authorized to work. Employers must reverify employment eligibility no later than the date the J-1 worker’s work authorization expires, as recorded on the Form I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification, as discussed above. See Q4 for information about USCIS providing for an extension of work authorization if a J-1 worker’s Form I-94 expires while a timely-filed extension of stay application is pending.
The rule change covers all J-1 exchange programs. For most cultural exchange programs that run well under 4 years, the impact is expected to be minimal. In programs with longer durations, such as Research Scholar (see below), your organization may employ individuals who will need to file an EOS before completing their program.
I employ J-1 Research Scholars with employment durations of more than 4 years. What will I need to do after 4 years?
You should identify any Research Scholars whose program durations exceed 4 years and work with your program sponsor to begin the EOS process well in advance of the admission end date. The process involves:
- The sponsor issues an updated Form DS-2019 recommending a program extension.
- The exchange visitor files an EOS application (currently Form I-539) with USCIS, including applicable fees. USCIS will require the exchange visitor to complete biometrics after filing the application.
Note that currently some USCIS service centers are taking months to process applications, so early submission of materials for extensions is essential.
If USCIS denies the EOS, you cannot continue to employ the individual unless they present proof of employment eligibility, consistent with the government’s requirements.
Yes. Under the new rule, when a J-1 exchange visitor’s Form I-94 expires while an EOS application is pending, the expired I-94 combined with a USCIS receipt notice (Form I-797) confirming timely filing is considered unexpired for up to 240 days while the EOS remains pending. The agency defines a timely-filed application as a USCIS receipt date of no later than the date the J-1 exchange visitor’s authorized admission period expires. J-1 exchange visitors may continue working during this period based on this authorization until USCIS issues a decision or the 240 days is reached, whichever comes first.
The agency has provided a different extension of program authorization if a J-1 exchange visitor timely files an EOS application on or before March 18, 2027. While the EOS application is pending, these J-1 exchange visitors may continue authorized employment and activities “consistent with the terms and conditions of” program objectives (including authorized training), pursuant to a new or transferred program, up to the program end date on the DS-2019 filed with the EOS application. The agency has reserved the right to extend the deadline for this extended exception to a date later than March 18, 2027, in 6-month increments, if it publishes a notice in the Federal Register. The expired Form I-94 combined with a USCIS receipt notice (Form I-797) confirming timely filing is considered unexpired for up to the program end date. These J-1 exchange visitors must file another EOS application, including a DS-2019 with a later program end date than the one pending with USCIS, before the program end date for the pending EOS application expires, in order to continue their activities consistent with the program objectives while waiting for USCIS adjudication—but they cannot continue to work beyond the program end date of the DS-2019 submitted with the first, still pending EOS application.
Note that J-2 dependents who require a separate Employment Authorization Document (EAD) do not have the same automatic extension benefit, and their EAD must remain valid for authorized employment to continue.