The federal government has appealed the court order that stopped its rule ending “duration of status” (D/S) for international students. On September 30, 2026, DHS, ICE and the other federal defendants filed a notice of appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security (D. Mass. No. 1:26-cv-13799). The appeal targets Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV’s September 14 memorandum and order, which postponed the rule nationwide one day before it was due to take effect. The First Circuit docketed the appeal the same day as Case No. 26-2112.
What the government has not done matters more for students right now. According to NAFSA, one of the plaintiffs, the government “has not asked the appeals court to pause the district court’s decision while the appeal moves forward.” No motion for a stay pending appeal appears on the district court docket either. The September 14 order therefore remains fully in force. DHS and ICE may not implement the final rule, and F-1 students, J-1 exchange visitors and I-visa media representatives continue to be admitted for duration of status. A notice of appeal is a short procedural filing. The government’s legal arguments will come later in its opening brief, on a schedule the First Circuit has not yet set.
USCIS is still following the order. As of October 2, the Form I-765 page states that, under the September 14 order, USCIS “continues to accept the 08/28/24 edition of Form I-539 and 08/21/25 edition of Form I-765 and is not accepting the 09/15/26 edition” of either form. The 09/15/26 editions were written for the fixed-admission-period system and were originally announced as mandatory, with no grace period. OPT, STEM OPT and change-of-status applicants should keep filing the older editions until USCIS says otherwise.
The final rule, published July 17, 2026, would replace open-ended D/S admission with fixed periods: generally up to four years for F and J nonimmigrants and 240 days for I-visa journalists. Anyone needing more time would have to file for an extension of stay with USCIS. A coalition sued on August 18, including NAFSA, the Presidents’ Alliance, the American Federation of Teachers and the UAW. They argued that DHS violated the Administrative Procedure Act through a short comment period, a deficient cost-benefit analysis and failure to respond to comments.
What to watch: the main risk is a government motion asking the district court or the First Circuit to stay the order pending appeal. If granted, that motion could bring the rule back on short notice. Until that happens, current students and exchange visitors do not need to plan for a four-year cap or an extension-of-stay filing under the new rule. All existing F-1 and J-1 requirements still apply, including full course loads, current SEVIS records and employment limits. Students thinking about long programs, program changes or future H-1B and green card paths should follow the appeal rather than treat the pause as permanent.
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Source: Court docket (D. Mass. 1:26-cv-13799) via CourtListener; NAFSA; USCIS