Legally entering and living in the United States, sometimes years at a time, is a privilege, not a right. That's something that foreigners are learning isn't taken lightly with President Trump back in the White House since Jan. 2025. And on Thursday, the Department of Homeland Security announced plans to crack down on those visitors who just refuse to leave.
For decades, foreign students have been admitted into the U.S. for an unspecified period, enabling thousands to abuse the system and become “forever students” by perpetually enrolling in courses to avoid leaving our nation.
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) July 16, 2026
By implementing clear, finite limits on these visas,… pic.twitter.com/1IN5yjelGO
For decades, foreign students have been admitted into the U.S. for an unspecified period, enabling thousands to abuse the system and become “forever students” by perpetually enrolling in courses to avoid leaving our nation.
By implementing clear, finite limits on these visas, the United States is reclaiming its ability to properly screen, vet, and monitor individuals within our borders.
The new limits on foreign visa holders would not affect only foreign students, though:
The Trump administration moved on Thursday to tighten the duration of visas for foreign students, cultural exchange visitors and journalists.
The new final rule from the Department of Homeland Security creates a fixed time period for F visas for international students, J visas that allow visitors on cultural exchange programs to work in the U.S., and I visas for members of the media. Those visas are currently available for the duration of the program or employment in the U.S.
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Under the new regulations, the student and exchange visa periods would be no longer than four years. The visa for journalists - which currently can last years - would be up to 240 days or, in the case of Chinese nationals, 90 days.
That last part drew some grumbling from Chinese officials in Aug. 2025 when the rules were proposed, which they called "discriminatory," according to the Reuters story linked above. Now, here's how those on foreign visas could remain stateside, under the new regulations:
Visa holders who want to stay in the United States beyond their fixed period of admission will need to apply to DHS for an extension or gain readmission by traveling abroad and then re-entering the United States, DHS said.
As we also saw earlier on Thursday, DHS announced it would be resuming traffic stops by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), with a slight adjustment in how it's done.
READ MORE: ICE Makes a U-Turn on Traffic Stops, but There's One Big Catch
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The administration said that graduate students from overseas were a major stumbling block in keeping track of who is inside the U.S., some of whom would stay for "decades":
The regulations prohibit graduate students from changing their "educational objectives" at any point or from transferring to another school without authorization. They halve the amount of time students have to leave the United States after completing their degree or training from 60 to 30 days.
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The department cited a dramatic rise in such visas in the posting. It said there were more than 1.8 million student visa admissions in 2024, a more than 11% increase over the previous year.
The U.S. granted visas to more than 500,000 exchange visitors and 37,300 members of the media in fiscal year 2024, which began on October 1, 2023, it said.
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DHS said it has many examples of students and exchange visitors staying for decades on their visas.
What's the next step? Congress will need to review and approve the new DHS policies.
This is a developing story. RedState will provide updates as more information becomes available.
Editor's Note: President Trump is leading America into the "Golden Age" as Democrats try desperately to stop it.
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