A federal judge in Massachusetts has enjoined the DHS rule that was set to eliminate “duration of status” (D/S) for F-1 students and J-1 exchange visitors, just one day before the rule’s scheduled September 15, 2026, effective date. The decision granted a preliminary injunction, postponing the rule nationwide while litigation continues. For now, the current D/S framework remains in place.
We covered the substance of the final rule in detail when it was published in July. This post focuses on what the court’s order means operationally.
What the Court Decided
The court found that plaintiffs — a coalition of higher-education associations and labor unions — are likely to succeed on their claim that DHS acted arbitrarily and capriciously in adopting the rule.
The opinion identifies several procedural defects: DHS didn’t meaningfully quantify the costs of reduced international enrollment, didn’t seriously engage with less restrictive alternatives (such as upgrading SEVIS or tying admission periods to actual program length), didn’t substantively respond to many of the roughly 22,000 public comments, and didn’t draw a rational connection between the rule and its stated national-security and fraud-prevention rationales.
Because the court issued a preliminary injunction, the fixed admission period framework does not take effect, and the pre-existing D/S system continues to govern F-1 and J-1, admissions while the litigation proceeds on the merits.
What This Means for Employers and Global Mobility Teams
- D/S remains the operative framework. Sponsored F-1 employees on OPT/STEM OPT and J-1 exchange visitors continue to be governed by “duration of status” rather than a fixed admission end date. There is no immediate need to file extensions of stay based on a four-year cap on admission.
- Pause but do not discard transition planning. The audits and tracking-system updates many teams developed in response to the July final rule should be maintained until there is a final decision the litigation. This injunction can be appealed, narrowed, or overturned by a final decision on the merits, and the rule could still take effect at some point in the future.
- No change to current OPT/STEM OPT processing. The temporary six-month EOS filing reprieve and other transition provisions in the final rule are moot for the moment; the rule they were designed to soften is not in effect.
- Watch for an appeal and further orders. Although the decision is unambiguous in its disapproval of the rule, DHS may seek review of this ruling. We would expect further developments, potentially including emergency appellate action, in the coming weeks.
- International student and researcher recruitment can proceed on familiar terms. Institutions and employers concerned about the rule’s chilling effect on enrollment and hiring pipelines can, for now, continue to rely on the existing D/S structure in their planning and communications.
Our Perspective
This is a significant, albeit interim development. Preliminary injunctions preserve the status quo while a case is litigated; they do not resolve the underlying legal questions. Given the scope of the changes at stake and the government’s clear interest in this rule, we expect DHS to pursue every available avenue to implement the rule, whether through appeal or a revised rulemaking that attempts to cure the defects the court identified.
We will continue to track this litigation closely and will update clients as soon as there is a material change, whether that is an appellate stay, a final ruling on the merits, or a new DHS rulemaking. In the meantime, we would recommend maintaining but not implementing F-1/J-1 tracking systems built around a four-year fixed period.
Should you have questions about how this injunction affects your organization’s F-1or J-1 populations, please contact your Meltzer Hellrung professional.
