U.S. imposes four-year limit on international student visa stays, hits Nigerians
By Aboki Forex —
The United States will impose a four-year limit on the stay of most international students and exchange visitors under a new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) rule. The policy, announced on Thursday by the Trump administration, replaces a decades-old policy that allowed students to remain in the country for the duration of their academic programmes.
Holders of F and J visas must now apply for federal approval to extend their stay after four years, even if they have not completed their studies, intend to pursue postgraduate education or qualify for work experience linked to their academic programmes. The move is expected to affect about 1.5 million international students and exchange visitors currently in the U.S.
What the new rule means for current students
Under the new rule, students already in the U.S. on F or J visas will also be subject to the four-year cap, beginning from the rule's effective date, regardless of when they first entered the country or the length of their programme. Those requiring additional time, including doctoral candidates, medical residents and researchers enrolled in long-term programmes, must submit formal extension requests to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), complete biometric screening, and pay application fees. They can no longer rely on their educational institutions to maintain their immigration status.
The DHS said students who remain in the U.S. beyond the four-year limit without approval could face three-year or ten-year re-entry bans, depending on the length of their overstay.
Tighter rules on grace periods and transfers
The new regulation also tightens other aspects of the student visa system. It reduces the grace period available to students before leaving the country after completing their studies and places additional restrictions on transfers between educational institutions. Foreign journalists on I visas will also see their permitted stay limited to about eight months unless an extension is granted.
Administration officials said the changes are designed to reduce visa fraud, prevent overstays and strengthen national security by introducing fixed timelines for non-immigrant visa holders.
Context for Nigerian students
The latest policy builds on a series of immigration restrictions introduced by the Trump administration that have significantly tightened access to the United States for international students and foreign nationals, including Nigerians. Earlier this year, the U.S. Mission in Nigeria clarified that Nigerian students and exchange visitors already holding valid F-1 and J-1 visas would not be affected by Presidential Proclamation 10998, despite the country's inclusion among 19 nations facing partial visa suspensions from January 1, 2026.
While the proclamation initially covered F, M and J student and exchange visas alongside certain visitor and immigrant visa categories, the U.S. Mission later stated that existing holders of valid F-1 and J-1 visas could continue their studies and exchange programmes uninterrupted. However, Washington has continued tightening its immigration framework. In May 2026, USCIS announced that foreign nationals temporarily residing in the United States, including Nigerians, would generally be required to return to their home countries to apply for permanent residency (Green Cards), rather than adjusting their status from within the U.S.
In July 2025, the U.S. revised its reciprocity schedule, limiting most new non-immigrant visas issued to Nigerian citizens to single-entry visas valid for only three months, replacing the previous multi-entry, longer-validity arrangement.
Unlike the earlier clarification, which protected holders of valid student visas from immediate travel restrictions, the new regulation affects the duration of stay for international students already in the U.S. and future applicants, requiring them to seek federal approval to remain beyond four years, regardless of whether they have completed their academic programmes.