Colleges and Unions Sue DHS to Kill the Four-Year Cap on Student Visas Weeks Before It Takes Effect

A coalition of higher education groups and unions sued the Department of Homeland Security in federal court in Massachusetts on Aug. 18, asking a judge to block and vacate the final rule capping F and J visas at four years. Plaintiffs include the Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, the American Federation of Teachers, NAFSA and the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities in Massachusetts, plus several unions. The rule, issued in July and set to take effect in September, replaces the 'duration of status' approach with fixed admission periods.

The suit puts a core piece of the administration's immigration agenda before a court weeks before it binds, and the plaintiffs' procedural claims -- that DHS failed to weigh costs and benefits and did not address roughly 22,000 largely opposed comments -- go to how the rule was made rather than only what it does. Doctoral and research programs exceed four years.

DHS defended the rule, asking 'where was the outrage when foreign nationals were abusing the system.' The agency cited 2,100 students who entered between 2000 and 2010 and still held active F visas as of April 2025, out of roughly 1.6 million student visa holders in 2024.