WASHINGTON — U.S. government agencies and universities are intensifying efforts to warn international students about the serious consequences of visa violations, including overstaying their authorized period of admission. The warnings come as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposes a rule change that would replace the current “duration of status” system with a fixed four-year stay for most F-1 and J-1 student visa holders, as reported by The Times of India.
Under the current system, international students can remain in the U.S. for the duration of their academic programs. The proposed rule would require students to apply for an extension if their program exceeds four years, a change that could impact many students, as the median time to complete a bachelor’s degree is around 4.3 years, according to a report from The Times of India. Immigration experts, such as lawyer Dan Berger, have warned that students must pay close attention to their I-94 records, which would clearly state their new expiration dates, or they risk accumulating “unlawful presence.”
The consequences of overstaying a visa can be severe. According to the U.S. Department of State, an individual who overstays for more than 180 days but less than a year faces a three-year bar from re-entering the U.S. An overstay of more than one year can result in a ten-year bar. Overstaying also leads to the automatic voiding of a visa and can make an individual ineligible for future visas or a change of status, as noted by the International Student and Scholar Services at Temple University.
Data from the DHS indicates that for Fiscal Year 2023, the suspected overstay rate for student or exchange visitor visas was 3.67 percent. While this is a small percentage, it represents thousands of individuals, prompting a renewed focus on visa compliance. The U.S. Embassy in India, for example, has used social media to warn Indian students that “breaking US laws can cost your student visa,” highlighting that a visa is a privilege, not a right, according to a report from The Times of India.