Dear International Students:
You may have heard that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has proposed a rule to eliminate Duration of Status (D/S) for F students and their dependents and J exchange visitors and their dependents. In this proposed rule, students would have specific end dates, rather than Duration of Status. For example, a doctoral student would initially receive 4 years of F-1 status upon entry to the United States and would need to apply to the USCIS for an extension of their F-1 legal status to continue the academic program in the US.
Additionally, the following foreign nationals would be limited to admissions of up two years: Those who were born in or are citizens of countries listed on the State Sponsor of Terrorism List or who are citizens of countries where there is a 10% or more overstay rate for students and exchange visitors. A partial list of these countries currently include: Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea), Iran, Sudan, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Nigeria, Micronesia, Eritrea, Georgia, Djibouti.
The Office of International Students shares your concerns over this proposed rule and understands the impact this will have on international students. There are other proposed changes included in this proposed rule that are equally concerning to the Office of International Students.
This is only a proposed rule, published September 25, 2020, at the proposed rule stage, which means that it will proceed through normal public notice and comment procedures before any final rule is published. This means that no change has happened yet.
We will be monitoring this proposed rule and we will keep you informed as the situation develops. Please know that The Graduate Center, CUNY is aware of the proposed rule and is actively working on our response to it along with many other universities and national education associations and organizations. We will keep you informed of developments. As always, please contact an International Student Advisor at the Office of International Students if you have questions or concerns. Some links to further information are included below.
For more information, please see NAFSA’s information page on the proposed rule
https://www.nafsa.org/professional-resources/browse-by-interest/proposal-replace-duration-status
Other Resources:
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/09/25/2020-20845/establishing-a-fixed-time-period-of-admission-and-an-extension-of-stay-procedure-for-nonimmigrant
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Please contact the Office of International Students at intstu@gc.cuny.edu if you have any questions. Our office is here to support you.
