Federal Judge Blocks Trump Admin Rule Limiting Foreign Student, Journalist Stays
Thestandard · 2 SOURCESabout 2 hours ago2 MIN
Summary
A federal judge in Boston has blocked the Trump administration's new rule that would impose time limits on how long foreign students and journalists can stay in the United States. U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor ruled the Department of Homeland Security failed to provide adequate justification for scrapping a five-decade-old system allowing students and exchange visitors to remain for their duration of status. The ruling, issued a day before the rule was set to take effect on Tuesday, came in response to a lawsuit filed by unions and higher education groups.
Key Points
- U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV, a George W. Bush appointee, granted the plaintiffs' request to postpone the rule's effective date under Section 705 of the Administrative Procedure Act
- The DHS rule, published in July and scheduled to take effect on September 15, would have replaced the "duration of status" system with fixed admission periods
- Under the new rule, F and J nonimmigrants would have been admitted for a maximum of four years, followed by a 30-day departure period
- I-class foreign media representatives would have been limited to 240 days at a time, with extensions available
- Plaintiffs included NAFSA: Association of International Educators, education unions, and higher education advocacy groups
Why It Matters
The ruling preserves the existing system that has enabled tens of millions of foreign students and researchers to contribute to American universities over nearly 50 years, and signals that courts will scrutinize immigration policy changes that lack proper legal justification .
The ruling preserves the existing system that has enabled tens of millions of foreign students and researchers to contribute to American universities over nearly 50 years, and signals that courts will scrutinize immigration policy changes that lack proper legal justification .