The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has introduced a new rule that would impose fixed time limits on visas for Nigerian and other international students, exchange visitors and foreign journalists, marking another step in President Donald Trump’s broader immigration crackdown.
According to a government notice published on July 16, the rule would replace the current system that allows holders of F visas for students, J visas for cultural exchange participants and I visas for foreign media to remain in the United States for the duration of their academic programme or employment.
The regulation is scheduled to take effect 60 days after its publication in the Federal Register, subject to congressional review.
The latest proposal comes as the Trump administration continues to tighten immigration policies after the president returned to office in January 2025.
The administration has already increased scrutiny of legal immigration by revoking student visas and green cards of some university students over their ideological views and ending the legal status of hundreds of thousands of migrants.
Under the proposed changes, F and J visa holders would be granted admission for no more than four years.
Foreign journalists on I visas, whose stays can currently last for years, would be limited to a maximum of 240 days. Chinese journalists would face an even shorter limit of 90 days.
DHS said affected visa holders would still be able to apply for extensions.
The department said the changes were prompted by a sharp increase in the number of visa holders entering the United States.
According to DHS, there were more than 1.8 million student visa admissions in 2024, representing an 11% increase from the previous year. During the 2024 fiscal year, which began on October 1, 2023, the US also issued visas to more than 500,000 exchange visitors and 37,300 members of the media.
Explaining the move, the department said the growing number of visitors “poses a challenge to DHS’ ability to monitor and oversee these non-immigrants while they are in the United States”.
DHS added that it has identified numerous cases of students and exchange visitors remaining in the country for decades under the existing rules.
Under the new regulation, anyone wishing to remain in the US beyond their approved period would have to apply for an extension through DHS or leave the country and seek readmission by re-entering the United States.